Income Support Mr. Maxton To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many children in Scotland were growing up in households dependent on income support or supplementary benefit; and what share of the Scottish population aged 16 years and under this represented, in each year since 1974. Miss Widdecombe The answer is given in the table. The information requested is not available for the years prior to 1977 and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.The figures in the table largely reflect the increased numbers of lone parent families that is a characteristic of Great Britain as a whole and the fact that 60 per cent. of lone parents are either separated or divorced. Members of this group tend to become dependent on income support because of the problems that they face in obtaining appropriate levels of maintenance for their children and also in entering the labour market. This situation will be helped by the two changes in family credit that are to take effect from April; the definition of remunerative work is to be reduced to 16 hours and a £15 disregard is to be introduced for child maintenance from absent parents. In the longer term the Child Support Agency will help lone parents obtain the child maintenance that is due to them.------- |Year | ------- | || ------- |1977 | ------- |1978 | ------- |1979 | ------- |1980 | ------- |1981 | ------- |1982 | ------- |1983 | ------- |1984 | ------- |11986| ------- |1987 | ------- |1988 | ------- |1989 | ------- |1990 | ------- Mr. Allen To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proportion of income support recipients are responsible for a mortgage or home loan and are (a) not in arrears with their payments, (b) more than three months in arrears and (c) more than six months in arrears. Miss Widdecombe The information is not available in the form requested. The Benefits Agency is currently--------------------------------------- | | --------------------------------------- |Retirement Pension2 | --------------------------------------- |Widows' Benefit2 | --------------------------------------- |Unemployment Benefit | --------------------------------------- |Sickness Benefit | --------------------------------------- |Statutory Sick Pay3 | --------------------------------------- |Invalidity Benefit2 | --------------------------------------- |Industrial Disablement Benefit | --------------------------------------- |Industrial Death Benefit | --------------------------------------- |Maternity Allowance | --------------------------------------- |Statutory Maternity Pay | --------------------------------------- |Non-contributory RP | --------------------------------------- |War Pension | --------------------------------------- |Attendance Allowance | --------------------------------------- |Invalid Care Allowance4 | --------------------------------------- |Severe Disablement Allowance | --------------------------------------- |Mobility Allowance | --------------------------------------- |Income Support/Supplementary Benefit5| --------------------------------------- |Child Benefit (per child)6 | --------------------------------------- |One Parent Benefit | --------------------------------------- |Family Credit/FIS7 | --------------------------------------- |Rate Rebate5 | --------------------------------------- |Rent Allowance5 | --------------------------------------- |Rent Rebate58 | --------------------------------------- |Community Charge Benefits9 | --------------------------------------- undertaking an exercise to identify claimants in difficulties with their mortgage interest payments and to make those payments direct to lenders. From April all claimants receiving help with mortgage interest will have payments made automatically to qualifying lenders.