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Written question asked by Steve Webb (Liberal Democrat) on Tuesday, 17 July 2007, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 23 July 2007. It was answered by Mike O'Brien (Labour) on Monday, 23 July 2007 on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.

Home Responsibilities Protection

Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 8 February 2007, Official Report, column 1226W, on home responsibilities protection (HRP), what estimate he has made of the number of women who began to receive state retirement pension who had any recorded HRP, including women for whom such HRP did not reduce the number of qualifying years needed for a full state pension, in each year between 1978-79 and 2004-05.
Answer

The available information is set out in the following table.The second column of the table shows the number of women aged 60 in each financial year from 1985-86 to 2004-05 with some entitlement to basic state pension who had home responsibilities protection (HRP), including women for whom such HRP did not reduce the number of qualifying years required for a full basic state pension.

Number of women with HRP, including those for whom HRP did not reduce qualifying years needed for full BSP
Number
1985-86 20,000
1986-87 30,000
1987-88 30,000
1988-89 40,000
1989-90 50,000
1990-91 60,000
1991-92 60,000
1992-93 60,000
1993-94 70,000
1994-95 70,000
1995-96 80,000
1996-97 80,000
1997-98 100,000
1998-99 100,000
1999-2000 100,000
2000-01 110,000
2001-02 110,000
2002-03 130,000
2003-04 150,000
2004-05 170,000
Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10,000 and are consistent with the information supplied in the answer of 8 February 2007.
2. Figures refer to women living in the UK and overseas.
3. Information at this level of detail is not reliable before 1985.
4. Some women who reach state pension age in a particular year with some entitlement to basic state pension may defer their entitlement and claim in a later year.
5. HRP does not reduce the number of qualifying years required for a full basic state pension when that year is already a qualifying year or is one for which a married woman's reduced rate election is in force.
6. Figures refer to those women with some entitlement to basic state pension based on their own contribution record. Entitlement to basic state pension requires satisfying the ‘first contribution condition’ and the ‘25 per cent. rule’. Some women who do not satisfy one or both of these conditions may, nevertheless, also have HRP recorded.
Source:
Lifetime Labour Market Database 2, 2003-04

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
463 c728-9W; 151449
Session
2006-07
Related items
Home Responsibilities Protection
Thursday, 8 February 2007
Written questions
House of Commons
Subjects
Home responsibilities protection
Link
View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk