Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of employment support allowance recipients that have seen an overall reduction in benefit payments when council tax benefit has been withdrawn following the introduction of support for mortgage interest; and if he will make a statement.

Council Tax benefit has been replaced with Council Tax reduction schemes, which are the responsibility of Local Authorities (LAs). Most LAs will offer the maximum level of relief for those receiving income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA). The move to SMI loans will mean a very small number of claimants (around 100 across Great Britain) will lose entitlement to income-related ESA and will have to apply for Council Tax reduction on income grounds. It is open to any LA to adjust the way their scheme operates in the unlikely event that this results in any individuals receiving a lower level of support towards their Council Tax payments