Benefit recipients living outside of the Island

1240/5(7899)

WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR SOCIAL SECURITY BY DEPUTY J.A. HILTON OF ST. HELIER

ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 22nd OCTOBER 2013

Question

Further to information given at a recent public scrutiny meeting with the Minister, that currently approximately 92 individuals who reside outside of the Island are in receipt of Invalidity Benefit, will the Minister advise:-

1. the countries in which the 92 individuals reside?
2. the cost to the public of the benefit to the 92 claimants and their dependents, where applicable, for the year 2012?
3. the length of time each of the 92 claimants have been in receipt of the benefit and the length of time they were employed before claiming the benefit?
4. how many of the individuals, if any, have now progressed onto qualifying for a Jersey Old Age pension simply by being in receipt of Invalidity Benefit and, what is the cost of the payments for the Jersey Old Age Pension to the former claimants of Invalidity Benefit and their dependents?

Answer

Invalidity Benefit is a contributory benefit available to working age individuals with serious long- term illnesses such that the claimant is unable to work. The estimate of 92 individuals claiming Invalidity Benefit outside Jersey was given during a recent Scrutiny hearing.

The information below is based on 95 individuals identified as being in receipt of Invalidity Benefit and resident outside Jersey at 31 August 2013. Invalidity benefit has not been available to new claimants since October 2004 and the number of claimants is steadily decreasing.

Jersey  has  long-standing  reciprocal  agreements  with  many  countries  including  the  United Kingdom, Portugal, France, Spain and Guernsey (which also covers Alderney) in respect of Social Security benefits. The reciprocal agreements with each of these countries specifically provides for individuals living in the countries to be able to receive various Social Security benefits, including Invalidity Benefit, as if the individual were still living in Jersey. Any change to payment of Invalidity Benefit in a reciprocal country would need to also be made to the payment of the benefit in Jersey itself.

1. the countries in which the 92 individuals reside?

2. Invalidity Benefit is paid from the Social Security Fund. The amount paid to these 95 individuals for 2012 was £1,018,000.
3. As noted above, Invalidity Benefit has not been available to new claimants since 2004. The 95 ongoing claims have claim durations as shown below:

The  following  table  indicates  the  number  of  contribution  years  recorded  against  the individual prior to their claim for Invalidity Benefit. In general, contribution years are built up through employment, but individuals can also receive contribution credits during periods  of  short-term  or  long-term  incapacity,  whilst  receiving  Maternity  Benefit  or following a compulsory redundancy.

4. As agreed with Deputy Hilton, further research will be undertaken to identify all Invalidity Benefit claims which closed over the period of January 2011 to December 2012 and to determine:

1. The number of these claims that were closed as a result of the claimant reaching pension age, and qualifying for a Jersey Old-Age Pension
2. The total value of Jersey OAP paid to these individuals in 2012

Both these figures will be broken down by on-Island claimants and off-Island claimants, determined at the date the OAP started