Written question asked by Ashok Kumar (Labour) on Wednesday, 7 December 2005, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 12 December 2005. It was answered by Stephen Timms (Labour) on Thursday, 15 December 2005 on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.

Winter Fuel Payment

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners (a) are eligible for and (b) have claimed the winter fuel allowance in Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland constituency.

Answer: It is not possible to provide an estimate of the number of people who are eligible for a winter fuel payment. So far this winter, 1,877 claim forms have been issued to people in the Middlesborough South and East Cleveland constituency and of these 1,212 have been returned and processed. The majority of payments are made automatically without the need to claim. Last winter 18,920 winter fuel payments were made in the Middlesborough South and East Cleveland constituency.

Secondary information