The information requested is not available.
(2) how many and what percentage of claimants of jobseeker's allowance have been excused from meeting jobseeker's allowance rules in each month of the last two years for which information is available;
(3) how many and what percentage of claimants of jobseeker's allowance have been excused from meeting jobseeker's allowance rules in each year since 1997 for which information is available.
The information requested is not available. There is no policy in place which allows jobseekers to be excused from meeting jobseeker's allowance rules although different rules can apply in different circumstances.
Figures are available broken down by quarter. The available information is in the table.
Unknown duration 0 to3 months 3 to 6 months Over 6 months November 2005 4,800 95,800 119,800 142,600 February 2006 4,800 113,900 117,300 125,700 May 2006 5,300 94,800 108,500 109,000 August 2006 4,700 123,400 107,600 118,000 November 2006 6,700 104,600 126,800 120,300 February 2007 13,600 124,100 120,300 92,300 May 2007 19,000 101,500 103,900 71,000 August 2007 27,100 120,100 74,100 70,200 November 2007 n/a n/a n/a n/a February 2008 87,400 114,800 113,100 26,000 May 2008 167,500 111,300 50,400 n/a August 2008 285,700 19,100 n/a n/a n/a = Not available Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 2. Figures for November 2007 are not available due to jobseeker’s allowance data for that quarter not being received by IFD. 3. Figures for August 2008 will be revised when the new quarter’s data are released. 4. Data shown are quarterly due to the frequency of the 5 per cent. data. 5. Caution should exercised when looking at the August 2008 quarter as this maybe deficient due to a proportion of claims being received late. The best statistics on benefits are now derived from 100 per cent. data sources. However, the 5 per cent. sample data still provide some detail not yet available from the 100 per cent. data sources. Figures are subject to a high degree of sampling error and should only be used as a guide. Source: Department for Work and Pensions, Information Directorate (IFD), 5 per cent. sample.
The information requested is not available.
While we do not predict future levels of unemployment, we are planning for the impact of higher levels of jobseeker’s allowance claims in the coming months.
We do not collect information on the medical conditions of jobseeker’s allowance claimants.
As at February 2009, there are 216,690 people claiming jobseeker’s allowance in Great Britain aged 50 and over.
Notes:
1. Number of claimants rounded to nearest five.
2. Data is published at: https://www.nomisweb.co.uk
3. Figures exclude clerical cases.
Source:
100 per cent. count of claimants of unemployment-related benefits, Jobcentre Plus computer systems (computer held cases only).
The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
Letter from Mel Groves:
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking what the average time between submission of a claim for Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) being submitted and the claimant receiving the first Jobseeker’s Allowance payment was in the last period for which figures are available. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
The measurement of performance we use for JSA is known as the Actual Average Clearance Time (AACT). This is a calculation derived from an average of all the cases processed on our benefit processing system against the time each of those cases has taken to be processed. For JSA the two dates used to calculate this average are from the initial date of contact by the customer (i.e. their call to one of our Contact Centres) to the date a decision is made on their claim and a letter of eligibility is issued to them.
We cannot measure when the customer actually receives their first payment. The payment will be issued, if the customer is eligible, on the date a letter is issued. Monies will become available to the customer once they have passed through the banking clearance system for the relevant bank/building society or the Post Office Card Account, or when the postal system delivers a cheque payment for the customer to cash.
The AACT for JSA currently stands at 10.5 days (in month at February 2009) and 10.2 days (year to date). This is within the target of 11.5 days.