Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to increase the take-up of Pension Credit amongst older households in Scotland; and what consideration he has given to the potential merits of an all entitlements take-up strategy.

The Government is committed to ensuring that all pensioners receive the support to which they are entitled. That is why we have been running the biggest ever Pension Credit taken-up campaign across the whole of Greater Britain, promoting Pension Credit to eligible pensioners and their family and friends through adverts on television and radio; on social media and on digital screens in GP surgeries and Post Offices, as well as in the press. The latest burst of the campaign began in September, and further promotional activity is planned until the end of the financial year.

We are also focusing on a range of other actions to increase the take-up of Pension Credit, including targeted communications and partnership working as well as engaging with all councils, both directly and through the Local Authority Welfare Direct bulletins. In Scotland, 19 councils have actively supported the Pension Credit campaign by promoting it on social media and distributing promotional materials, including posters and leaflets.

We are also making better use of data to reach potentially eligible households. For example, since February, all new Housing Benefit claimants who may be eligible have been invited to apply for Pension Credit and we are testing whether it is possible to identify potentially eligible households using HMRC and DWP data.