To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what estimate she has made of the cost of increasing the earnings disregard for income support to (a) £30 and (b) £50 per week. [11580]

Our objective is to reduce poverty and welfare dependency and to promote work incentives. We will develop a system that supports work, savings and honesty. Our first steps are to focus on helping people off welfare and into work and to review the central areas of insecurity for older people.The information is in the table.

Increase in earnings disregard on income support	Estimated cost
Increase to £30	Between £45 million and £55 million
Increase to £50	Between £65 million and £110 million

1. Estimates are based on the 1994–95 "Family Resource Survey", and the May 1996 "Quarterly Statistical Enquiry", uprated to 1997–98 levels of prices and benefit levels. Numbers of income support cases with earnings have been uprated to be in line with caseload forecasts underlying the 1997 departmental report.2. The range reflects uncertainty as to whether new claimants will be in receipt of income support or income-related jobseeker's allowance. The cost excludes the cost of families, in receipt of family credit, with a partner working between 16 and 24 hours who would become better off on income support, as it has been assumed that they would claim income-related jobseeker's allowance.