Asked by: Lord Lucas (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what characteristics of the National Insurance number system prevent them being aware how many National Insurance numbers are valid.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott
The National Insurance Number application process is robust, however there are instances where errors do occur. If it is identified that a National Insurance Number has been allocated and a record created in error, there are processes in place between the Department of Work and Pensions and HMRC to take action to prevent the National Insurance Number being used, for example in cases where a fraudulent application has been identified or a duplicate record has been created in error.
Asked by: Lord Lucas (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government why their systems use National Insurance numbers as personal identifiers if, at any given instant, they do not know whether such numbers are valid.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott
National Insurance Number are used as Identifiers for National Insurance Number Records; held for each individual who has been allocated a National Insurance Number.
Robust identity checks are undertaken when an application for a National Insurance Number is received. At the point of creation of a National Insurance Record the validity of the record has been confirmed.
Whilst a National Insurance Number is the identifier for a National Insurance account within the Department of Work and Pensions and HMRC, to enable Tax and Contributions to be posted to the citizen’s record and/or the administration of Department Benefits and Pensions, there are robust processes in place to validate a citizen’s/customer’s identity before a benefit/pension will be paid.
Asked by: Lord Lucas (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many National Insurance numbers were valid on the latest date for which this figure is available.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott
As of 11:50am on 16th July 2021, the Department Customer Information System (CIS) holds National Insurance Number records for 72, 096, 863 Adults; where a Date of Death is not held on their record. As processes are in place to remediate invalid National Insurance Number records, the volume of Live Adult records are deemed to be valid.
Asked by: Lord Lucas (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many National Insurance numbers were valid on 21 March.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott
The Information for 21 March is not available.