To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the cost of paying pension credit to women who do not qualify for the full state pension due to broken National Insurance contribution records; and if he will make a statement. (180132)

In 2006-07, the estimated expenditure on pension credit paid to women who do not receive a full basic state pension was around £1.25 billion.

All our estimates of the cost of the options to allow people to buy extra voluntary national insurance contributions to increase their basic state pension take into account offsets in income-related benefits, including pension credit.

Notes:

1. Data are taken from a 5 per cent. extract of Pensions Strategy Computer System, therefore figures are subject to a degree of sampling variation.

2. Figures are rounded and expenditure is calibrated to official DWP pension credit annual expenditure figures for 2006-07.

3. The current full rate of state pension used is as at March 2007, which was £84.25 per week.

4. Expenditure figures are shown in 2006-07 prices.