asked the Minister for Social Welfare the number of recipients for 1987 of (a) old age contributory pension (b) old age non-contributory pension (c) widow's contributory pension (d) widow's non-contributory pension (e) unmarried mother's allowance (f) deserted wife's allowance (g) unemployment benefit (h) unemployment assistance and (i) child benefit; the comparable figures for 1986; and the cost for each heading for each of the years.
Written Answers. - Social Welfare Recipients.
114.
The information requested by the Deputy is contained in the attached table.
Recipients and Expenditure 1986-1987
|
Scheme |
Recipients at 31 December |
Expenditure |
||
|
1986 |
1987 |
1986 |
1987* |
|
|
£million |
£million |
|||
|
Old Age Pension (Contributory) |
73,905 |
74,725 |
251.1 |
265.3 |
|
Old Age Pension (Non-Contributory) |
124,913 |
124,419 |
283.9 |
291.3 |
|
Widow's Pension (Contributory) |
79,826 |
81,144 |
212.1 |
224.8 |
|
Orphan's Pension (Contributory) |
751 |
725 |
||
|
Widow's Pension (Non-Contributory) |
17,320 |
18,060 |
39.5 |
42.7 |
|
Orphan's Pension (Non-Contributory) |
183 |
169 |
||
|
Unmarried Mother's Allowance |
12,039 |
13,930 |
36.7 |
44.0 |
|
Deserted Wife's Allowance |
4,445 |
4,870 |
14.8 |
17.0 |
|
Unemployment Benefit |
87,676 |
84,605 |
237.1 |
236.3 |
|
Unemployment Assistance |
146,016 |
153,591 |
391.5 |
417.2 |
|
Child Benefit |
476,149 |
475,814 |
205.5 |
215.1 |
*Provisional.
Note:Separate expenditure figures for Widows' and Orphans' pensions are not available.
Figures for Unemployment Assistance include payments to smallholders.