To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 27 February 2013, Official Report, column 561W, on Social Security Benefits: Greater London, what the minimum (a) volume and (b) level of diversity is required in a local authority to make it a realistic preparation for the national roll-out of the benefit cap.

The volume and diversity of households in the local authority areas selected for phased roll-out are just two of the factors that determined the choice.

The approach has to be based on the right package so that lessons are learned through a controlled test in a live environment. As such, it also needs to test all three local authority IT systems, be in one regional area, with bespoke account managers within the locations and in our delivery network. That provides us with the right conditions for testing and achieves value for money.