Departmental Telephone Services
Work and Pensions
Written answers and statements, 3 November 2009
Mark Oaten (Winchester, Liberal Democrat)
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many helplines her Department operates; and how much her Department has received from the operation of such helplines in each of the last three years.
Jim Knight (Minister of State (the South West), Regional Affairs; South Dorset, Labour)
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has 10 main customer contact numbers, which we think could be considered 'helplines'.
DWP does not receive any revenue from incoming phone calls. All call charges are levied by the caller's telephone or mobile service provider.
DWP ceased to receive a rebate on 0845 numbers in 2007. Prior to this, the revenue from 0845 calls was approximately £500,000 per year. We do not hold any more detailed information on this rebate.