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Financial Assistance Scheme

Volume 479: debated on Monday 21 July 2008

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the (a) total and (b) average amount paid out under the Financial Assistance Scheme has been in each month since it was established; and if he will make a statement. (216551)

The total amount paid out by the Financial Assistance Scheme Operational Unit for each month in which payments were made has been:

Month

Initial

Annual

Gross expenditure (£)

2005

December

13

0

36,894

2006

January

15

0

6,371

February

27

0

35,996

March

32

0

20,072

April

45

0

39,000

May

86

0

144,000

June

149

5

213,000

July

187

27

363,355

August

240

66

346,155

September

318

76

311,301

October

377

102

212,399

November

519

118

274,684

December

594

124

686,599

2007

January

751

136

326,659

February

823

153

359,132

March

882

175

506,441

April

937

205

311,721

May

1,014

222

305,209

June

1,073

240

348,517

July

1,116

268

352,981

August

1,419

278

1,955,995

September

2,269

291

1,575,369

October

2,717

320

1,259,933

November

3,064

371

1,146,130

December

3,333

685

1,223,222

2008

January

3,623

844

2,374,841

February

3,868

922

1,227,357

March

4,117

971

1,168,925

April

4,371

1,114

1,073,789

May

4,558

1,202

1,342,270

June

4,938

1,412

4,657,200

While it would be possible to calculate an average payment from these figures, it would not be meaningful due to a number of distorting factors. These include:

where changes to the legislation have resulted in some members receiving substantial payments for entitlement for past periods.

the phased implementation of regulatory changes, i.e. the FAS operational unit are now 51 per cent. of the way through the uplift from 80 to 90 per cent.

in any one month there will be a combination of members receiving payments for past periods, payments only for the current month, payments for part month, and some members that will have had a FAS payment adjusted for pension credit abatement.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what legal costs have been incurred by his Department in relation to the Financial Assistance Scheme in each month since the scheme was established; and if he will make a statement. (216587)

There have been no specific legal costs incurred by the Department for Work and Pensions in relation to the operation of the financial assistance scheme. Legal advice on policy and legislation governing FAS assistance levels is provided by departmental lawyers. To disaggregate this advice from other areas of advice would give rise to disproportionate cost.