18 July 2007
The Social Security Minister published the 2006 Report and Accounts.
These comprise the results of the Social Security Fund, the Social Security (Reserve) Fund and the Health Insurance Fund.
The main features of the accounts are:
· Income from contributions, interest and rent was £209 million, an increase of 7.2% (2005: £195 million).
· Expenditure on benefits was £166 million, a rise of 5.1% (2005: £158 million).
· Net Assets of the Social Security (Reserve) Fund increased in value by £54 million (after transfers of an additional £30 million). This reflects long term policy decisions around contribution rates and ceilings, the management of benefit expenditure and the active investment management of assets. If the current course is maintained this is good news for the island.
· Contributions collected from employees and employers rose to £124.0 million (2005: £117.1 million) for the Social Security Fund and £23.6 million (2005: £22.3 million) for the Health Insurance Fund. This increase is due to two factors; the annual-earnings linked up-rating in the contribution ceiling (5.3%) and the increase in the number of people working in the Island – 1,100 more than in 2005.
· Supplementation, which is paid by the States from taxation revenues and used to top-up the contributions of the lower to medium range of wage earners to protect their entitlement to benefits, increased by £5.8 million (11%) to £56.6 million. Approximately 31,400 workers earn below the contribution ceiling, which is an increase on 2005 of 1,000 contributors.
· Pension costs rose by 6.6% to £110.0 million (2005: £103.2 million). This was due to a 2.8% increase in pensioner numbers and the earnings-linked up-rating of pensions.
· Incapacity Allowances, payable when a person is incapable of work through injury, ill-health or disability, have increased by 2.9% to £35.7 million (2005: £34.7 million)
The Social Security Minister, Senator Paul Routier, commented
“2006 saw robust growth in both the Social Security (Reserve) and the Health Insurance Funds, which is important if we are to build a buffer against the inevitable growth in health and pension costs which will arise as our population grows”.
gov.je