The government has said that Minimum Income Guarantee (Mig) - income support for pensioners - was a "rough and ready measure".

The benefit, which guarantees a minimum income for older people, has been criticised for its complexity; others believe means testing is inappropriate for older people.

Ian McCartney, pensions minister and MP for Makerfield, told the Commons on Monday: "This government has never concealed the fact that the minimum income guarantee was a rough and ready measure...which needed to be taken."

He defended the government's attempts to eradicate pensioner poverty.

"The main point must be surely that this is the first government ever - in the last three generations of governments - to do something about pensioner poverty," said Mr McCartney.

However, Chris Bryant, Labour MP for Rhondda, said that pensioners in his constituency were still reluctant to claim Mig, because of the stigma attached to claiming income support by older people.

The latest figures showed that about 390,000 eligible pensioners were not yet receiving Mig.

The benefit will be replaced with the new pension credit in 2003.