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Average values of taxes and benefits, for bottom and top quintiles ranked by
equivalised disposable income of all households
Households with children
1979 1987 1990
|Bottom|Top |Bottom|Top |Bottom|Top
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
£ per year
Contributory cash benefits |328 |112 |396 |115 |370 |156
Non-Contributory cash benefits |1,066 |355 |3,356 |700 |3,689 |735
Direct Taxes and NIC |461 |2,772 |721 |7,728 |1,026 |9,748
Indirect taxes |695 |1,817 |1,442 |3,653 |1,772 |4,805
Equivalised disposable income<1> |1,903 |7,314 |3,648 |17,645|4,315 |25,618
Benefits in kind |1,883 |1,182 |3,529 |2,511 |4,367 |3,061
Final income |4,072 |9,839 |7,261 |23,703|8,500 |34,397
<1> Using the McClements equivalence scale with a household of a married
couple=1.
Notes:
Due to possible mis-recording of some non-contributory benefits as contributory
benefits, the split between the two types of benefit should be treated with
caution.
The equivalence scales used in the analysis are only applicable to disposable
income. It is not appropriate to apply them to other income measures or composite
parts of those measures.
These figures are not strictly comparable over time because of changes in
classification of taxes and benefits and because of changes in the Family
Expenditure Survey.
Mr. Dewar : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what was the (a) total income of the top 1 per cent. of taxpayers, (b) unearned income of the top 1 per cent. of taxpayers, (c) unearned income of all taxpayers, (d) total number of taxpayers and (e) number of taxpayers in the top 1 per cent. in each year since 1979 ; (2) what was the total unearned income of (a) all taxpayers and (b) the top 1 per cent. of taxpayers divided into income from (i) shares and securities, (ii) bank and interest-bearing accounts, (iii) building societies accounts and deposits, (iv) rents, (v) pensions and annuities and (vi) other, with details for each year since 1979.
Mr. Dorrell [holding answer 4 May 1993] : Available information is given in the tables. Estimates of income are based on information reported to tax offices and collected through annual surveys of personal incomes. For years before 1985-86, estimates exclude employees' contributions to occupational pension schemes and some investment income on which tax is deducted at source. It is therefore not possible to provide estimates of the total unearned income of all taxpayers, although information on the top 1 per cent. of taxpayers is available. For years up to and including 1989-90, married couples are counted
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as one taxpayer and their incomes are combined. Following the introduction of independent taxation, for 1990-91 onwards, husbands and wives are counted separately. Estimates for 1991-92 and 1992-93 are based on projections of the 1990-91 survey and are therefore provisional, and detailed information on the breakdown of unearned income is not available.
£ billion
All taxpayers Top 1 per cent.
of taxpayers
|Dividends |Bank and Building|Rents |Other unearned |Dividends |Bank and Building|Rents |Other unearned
|Society Interest |income |Society Interest |income
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1978-79 |- |- |- |- |0.5 |0.1 |0.1 |0.4
1983-84 |- |- |- |- |0.7 |0.3 |0.2 |0.8
1984-85 |- |- |- |- |0.6 |0.4 |0.2 |0.7
1985-86 |- |- |- |- |0.8 |0.8 |0.2 |0.6
1986-87 |3.7 |11.8 |1.0 |2.7 |1.0 |0.8 |0.3 |0.7
1987-88 |4.8 |12.1 |1.1 |3.0 |1.2 |0.8 |0.2 |0.9
1988-89 |6.9 |13.4 |1.5 |3.6 |2.5 |1.3 |0.3 |1.1
1989-90 |8.1 |21.0 |2.0 |4.2 |3.3 |1.6 |0.5 |1.7
1990-91 |8.7 |26.4 |1.8 |5.0 |3.0 |2.0 |0.4 |1.8
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Table file CW930505.036 not available
Employment Earnings
Mr. David Shaw : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the total earnings in (a) cash and (b) real terms from self-employment and employment in the manufacturing and service sectors by standard industrial classification of the earnings source in (a) 1963, (b) 1974, (c) 1979 and (d) the most recent period for which information is available ; and what were the percentage changes for each sector between each of those successive dates.
Mr. Nelson : Figures for income from employment in the manufacturing and service sectors, analysed on the basis of the standard industrial classification in use at the time of publication, may be found in the following CSO publications :
1963 National Income and Expenditure 1963-73 : tables 18 and 20 (wages and salaries only).
1974 (on 1968 Standard industrial Classification) : National Income and Expenditure 1982 edition : tables 3.1 and 3.3.
1974 (on 1980 classification) and later years may be found in the appropriate issues of the National Accounts Blue Book, Tables 2.1 and 2.3, and also on the CSO database, which can be accessed by the House of Commons Library.
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Estimates of income from self-employment by sector are not available.There are no official estimates of components of personal incomes measured at constant prices.
Ministers' Accommodation
Dr. Lynne Jones : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to tax the benefits in kind received by Ministers who have access to official accommodation ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Dorrell : I have no plans to change the tax treatment of any accommodation provided for Ministers.
London and Bishopsgate Investment Management
Mr. Don Foster : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on what date London and Bishopsgate International Investment Management plc applied to his Department for a principal's licence to carry on the business of dealing in securities under the provisions of the Prevention of Fraud (Investments) Act 1958.
Mr. Nelson : On 28 February 1988.
Mr. Don Foster : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 13 January, Official Report, column 749, to which firm or sole trader, whose
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application was received after 27 February 1988, his Department granted a licence to carry on the business of dealing in securities under the provisions of the Prevention of Fraud (Investments) Act 1958.Mr. Nelson : London and Bishopsgate International Investments Management plc.
Matrix Churchill
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer why a package sent recently, via Federal Express, by Mr. Douglas Franze from Washington, USA, addressed to Mr. Paul Henderson, a former managing director of Matrix Churchill, was inspected by Her Majesty's Customs and Excise ; and if he will make a statement.
Sir John Cope : As part of their general anti-smuggling activity Customs and Excise regularly examine a proportion of imported packages to check for undeclared goods and to protect society from the importation of items which are prohibited or restricted.
Petroleum Revenue Tax
Mrs. Ann Winterton : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the impact upon the Scottish oil industry of the Budget proposals for changes in petroleum revenue taxation.
Mr. Dorrell : To the extent that production is within the charge to petroleum revenue tax (PRT), doubling investors' marginal share of profit should encourage investment in, and extend the life of, fields. Removing the burden of PRT from new fields will both increase after-tax costs and increase after-tax profits that would have been subject to PRT. So companies will have greater incentives to undertake commercially-viable investment. That should prove beneficial to the United Kingdom offshore industry and its onshore support, including onshore support situated in Scotland.
Mr. Butterfill : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much of the total exploration and appraisal relief given against PRT liabilities over the last three years was allocated to (a) wells, (b) seismic, (c) overheads, (d) insurance and (e) other expenditure.
Mr. Dorrell : I regret that the information requested is not available.
ENVIRONMENT
Local Government Finance
Sir Thomas Arnold : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects to receive the Audit Commission report into local government finance.
Mr. Robin Squire : I understand that the Audit Commission plan to publish its report into standard spending assessments around the middle of May.
Local Government Reform
Mrs. Fyfe : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the reasons for creating a commission to investigate local Government reform in England.
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Mr. Robin Squire : We established the Local Government Commission to make recommendations on local government structure and boundaries having regard to the need to reflect the identities and interests of local communities and to secure effective and convenient local government, against the background of a variety of existing local authorities in England.
Mrs. Fyfe : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many local authorities, of each type, existed in England on 31 March 1974 ; how many of each type now exist ; and when he expects the commission on local government reform to report.
Mr. Robin Squire : In England, on 31 March 1974 there were :
|Number
---------------------------------------------
County councils |39
Shire district councils |1
Metropolitan district councils |36
London boroughs |32
City of London |1
At present there are :
Number
County councils 39
Shire district councils 296
Metropolitan district councils 36
London boroughs 32
City of London 1
The Local Government Commission is carrying out its reviews of local government structure in the shire counties of England in rolling programme. The commission will be making recommendations to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State as it completes each review. The commission has submitted its final report on the future structure of local government on the Isle of Wight and it is currently reviewing the other areas in the first tranche of its work programme.
Estate Action
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many properties in Estate Action schemes have been disposed of to the private sector.
Mr. Baldry : Excluding properties sold under the right to buy, it is expected that some 29,000 dwellings will have been disposed of to the private sector by the end of 1993-94.
Urban Development Corporations
Mr. Byers : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the present value of land held by each urban development corporation.
Mr. Robin Squire [holding answer 4 May 1993] : I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on Wednesday 8 July 1992, Official Report, column 253.
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Industrial and Provident Societies
Mr. Fraser : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has to amend the Industrial and Provident Societies Acts ; and if his consultations about changes will include housing associations.
Mr. Nelson : I have been asked to reply.
The Government have no plans at present to amend the current legislation.
EMPLOYMENT
Radiation Exposure
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what changes she proposes to make in the occupational radiation exposure limits.
Mr. McLoughlin : The UK's radiation dose limits for workers, comply with the current EC (Euratom) Directive on basic standards for radiation protection. Revision of this directive, and the dose limits therein, will begin later this year. There are no plans to reduce dose limits in advance of revision of the directive.
Graduate
Mr. Steinberg : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what measures her Department is taking to reduce the number of university graduates who are unemployed.
Mr. McLoughlin : The Employment Department is providing a wider range of measures than ever before to provide all unemployed people, including graduates, with the help they need to find a job. Some of these measures may be particularly appropriate for graduates, for example job review workshops, job search seminars or executive jobclubs. Training and enterprise councils have discretion to tailor training for work programmes specifically for unemployed graduates.
Employment Statistics
Mr. Ray Powell : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment (1) what percentage of female employees work (a) full time and (b) part time ;
(2) what percentage of male employees work (a) full time and (b) part time.
Mr. McLoughlin : In December 1992, 54 per cent. of female employees in the United Kingdom worked full time and 46 per cent. worked part time. At the same date 89 per cent. of male employees worked full time and 11 per cent. worked part time.
Training
Mr. Hunter : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if she will make a statement on the youth training credit pilot schemes.
Mr. McLoughlin : On 8 March, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced the next 10 training and enterprise councils (TECs) in England and Wales to be asked to develop youth credits. This round, the third in the progressive extension of the initiative, brings the number
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of TECs (and local enterprise companies in Scotland) offering or developing credits for young people to 34. The Government's aim is that, by 1996, every 16 and 17 year old who chooses to leave full-time education will have the offer of a credit.Mr. Hunter : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment when she will publish guidelines for the operating of training for work schemes.
Mr. McLoughlin : Planning guidance for 1993-94 was issued to training and enterprise councils (TECs) on 4December 1992. The operating agreement, setting out the contractual requirements for running training for work was issued to TECs during the first week in March.
Maternity Leave
Ms Quin : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what representations she has received from employers and employers organisations on the extension of the 14-week maternity leave period set out in the Trade Union Reform and Employment Rights Bill to 18 weeks.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : We have received one letter from an employer and one from an employers' organisation calling for an extension of the maternity leave period to 18 weeks. The Government are, however, satisfied from the extensive consultations carried out on the EC Pregnant Workers Directive that the great majority of employers wish the burdens on business arising from its implementation to be kept to a minimum.
Health and Safety
Ms Eagle : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if she has any plans to extend the pilot scheme currently running in Scotland involving public access to health and safety inspectors' reports.
Mr. McLoughlin : This exercise in making some information of inspectors reports publicly available was set up by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) on a pilot basis and encompasses reports on inspections made by the field operations division in Scotland from 5 January 1993. It is intended that the exercise will cover inspections made until at least 30 June. I am informed that the HSE will be evaluating the exercise over the next few weeks before deciding whether to extend it.
Mine Safety
Mr. Hardy : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what actions she proposes to take to secure amendment to the regulations concerning mine safety ; what proposals she has received to this end ; and if she will make a statement.
Mr. McLoughlin : In 1983 the Health and Safety Commission, which advises my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State on health and safety legislation, put in hand a programme to renew mining legislation. Regulations have been made, and codes of practice approved, for safety of exits at mines, electricity at work at mines, explosives in coal and other safety-lamp mines, and shafts and winding in mines. My right hon. Friend has recently received proposals for regulations and an approved code of practice for the management and administration of safety and health at mines.
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Mr. Hardy : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if she will make it her policy in her consideration of changes to the safety regulations applying to mines to adhere to the principles relating to maintenance or improvement of existing regulations set out in section 1 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
Mr. McLoughlin : The replacement of pre-1974 health and safety legislation is subject to section 1(2) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 which requires such replacement to maintain or improve the standards of health, safety and welfare established by or under the earlier legislation.
The Health and Safety Commission and the Government are committed to the maintenance and improvement of safety standards within the mining industry and this will remain a constant and paramount objective.
Industrial Action
Mr. Dunn : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if she will publish the number of days lost due to official and unofficial industrial action for each year since 1978 ; and if she will make a statement.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : Because of the practical difficulties in distinguishing between official and unofficial disputes such an analysis was discontinued in 1981. However, a special exercise for the Government's Green Paper "Unofficial Action and the Law", showed that approximately 1.3 million working days were lost in unofficial stoppages in 1988, more than one third of the 3.7 million days lost in the year. Data for 1978 to 1980 are as follows :
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Year Working days lost
(Thousands)
|Known official |Unofficial and not
|known
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1978 |4,052 |5,353
1979 |23,512 |5,962
1980 |10,081 |1,883
Wages Councils
Mr. Hanson : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what representations she has received against the abolition of wages councils since the Trade Union and Employment Rights Bill received its Third Reading in the House.
Mr. Michael Forsyth [holding answer 4 May 1993] : I have received a number of representations since Third Reading in the House, both supporting and opposing abolition. Since announcement of the Bill over 85 per cent. of letters from employers and employer bodies support abolition.
LORD CHANCELLORS DEPARTMENT
Juvenile Courts
Miss Lestor : To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancemation on juveniles aged 10 and under 17 proceeded against at magistrates courts is published annually in "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales". Table 6.1 refers. The latest available figures are for 1991 ; 1992 figures will be available in the autumn.
Information on the number of school reports submitted to youth courts is not collected centrally.
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Table 6.1 Defendants<1> proceeded against at magistrates' courts by type of offence
Extract from Criminal Statistics
England and Wales 1991
Year Total numberNumber of Percentage
defendants
(thousands)
proceeded Indictable Summary offences Indictable Summary offences
|against |offences |offences
|(thousands) |Offences |Motoring |Offences |Motoring
|(excluding |offences |(excluding |offences)
|motoring |motoring
|offences) |offences
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Persons aged 10 and under 17
1981 |130 |95 |22 |13 |73 |17 |10
1982 |121 |90 |20 |12 |74 |16 |9
1983 |112 |82 |20 |11 |73 |17 |10
1984 |105 |78 |17 |9 |75 |16 |9
1985 |94 |71 |15 |8 |76 |16 |8
1986 |75 |57 |11 |6 |76 |15 |8
1987 |68 |53 |10 |5 |78 |15 |7
1988 |62 |48 |10 |4 |77 |16 |7
1989 |55 |37 |14 |4 |66 |26 |8
1990 |54 |36 |13 |4 |67 |25 |8
1991 |50 |35 |12 |4 |69 |24 |7
Persons aged 17 and under 21
1981 |390 |144 |85 |161 |37 |22 |41
1982 |394 |152 |82 |160 |38 |21 |41
1983 |394 |149 |86 |159 |38 |22 |40
1984 |372 |148 |79 |145 |40 |21 |39
1985 |364 |149 |75 |140 |41 |21 |38
1986 |339 |133 |70 |136 |39 |21 |40
1987 |325 |140 |74 |110 |43 |23 |34
1988 |322 |137 |79 |106 |43 |25 |33
1989 |324 |122 |90 |112 |38 |28 |35
1990 |329 |129 |85 |114 |39 |26 |35
1991 |314 |132 |73 |110 |42 |23 |35
Defendants aged 21 and over<1>
1981 |1,774 |284 |365 |1,125 |16 |21 |63
1982 |1,706 |297 |366 |1,042 |17 |21 |61
1983 |1,797 |300 |415 |1,082 |17 |23 |60
1984 |1,708 |295 |385 |1,028 |17 |23 |60
1985 |1,689 |299 |379 |1,011 |18 |22 |60
1986 |1,757 |273 |427 |1,057 |16 |24 |60
1987 |1,451 |295 |421 |735 |20 |29 |51
1988 |1,480 |310 |454 |716 |21 |31 |48
1989 |1,484 |290 |464 |730 |20 |31 |49
1990 |1,509 |304 |478 |727 |20 |32 |48
1991 |1,591 |323 |488 |780 |20 |31 |49
All Defendants<1>
1981 |2,294 |523 |472 |1,299 |23 |21 |59
1982 |2,221 |539 |469 |1,214 |24 |21 |55
1983 |2,303 |530 |521 |1,252 |23 |23 |54
1984 |2,184 |521 |482 |1,181 |24 |22 |54
1985 |2,147 |520 |469 |1,158 |24 |22 |54
1986 |2,171 |463 |508 |1,199 |21 |23 |55
1987 |1,843 |488 |505 |850 |26 |27 |46
1988 |1,863 |494 |543 |826 |27 |29 |44
1989 |1,864 |449 |568 |847 |24 |30 |45
1990 |1,892 |469 |577 |846 |25 |31 |45
1991 |1,956 |489 |573 |894 |25 |29 |46
<1>Including "other defendants", i.e., companies, public bodies, etc.
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
Cyprus
Mr. Deva : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will hold an early meeting with representatives of the Turkish Cypriot community.
Mr. Garel-Jones : Our aim is to give effective support to the continuing inter-communal negotiations on Cyprus under UN auspices. The timing of any possible meeting with Turkish Cypriot representatives must be carefully considered in the light of progress in those negotiations.
Radio 4
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what action the United Kingdom's ambassador in Bonn has taken in respect of the petition received signed by listeners in Germany on the retention of Radio 4 on long wave ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : Her Majesty's ambassador in Bonn has forwarded the petition to London for the BBC, who are reviewing their future plans for transmitting Radio 4, taking into account the various representations which they are receiving.
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Cambodia
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what position the United Kingdom representative on the United Nations Security Council will take in relation to a continuing UN presence in Cambodia following the holding of elections there ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Goodlad : The mandate of the UN transitional authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) is due to end with the formation of a new Cambodian Government three months after the Constituent Assembly elections on 23-27 May. The UN is likely to maintain a strong presence in Cambodia after this through its specialised and humanitarian agencies and programmes, including for example UNESCO, FAO/WFP, UNDP and UNICEF.
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what position the United Kingdom representative at the United Nations is taking in relation to requests for a war crimes tribunal or special genocide commission to investigate the actions of Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia.
Mr. Goodlad : No such proposal is currently under consideration at the United Nations. In the absence of an international tribunal with jurisdiction to try Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge for genocide, Pol Pot and his associates would have to be brought before a competent Cambodian
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court. It is therefore for the new Cambodian Government to decide whether to bring them to trial. If this were to happen, we would be the last to object.Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what action he is taking to assist the release of funds promised by the United Nations to Cambodia for reconstruction and the clearing of land mines.
Mr. Goodlad : The international community has pledged $880 million for the reconstruction of Cambodia over a number of years, of which some $94.3 million has been disbursed. The flow of international aid is likely to increase substantially once a new government is in place in Phnom Penh. We regret the failure so far of the Supreme National Council of Cambodia to sign an International Bank for Reconstruction and Development package to help with the reconstruction of Cambodia, and urge all Cambodian parties to reach agreement on this as soon as possible. We have pledged some $30 million of aid since October 1991 of which $23 million has been committed. We have contributed funds to the HALO Trust, a British non-governmental organisation involved in mine clearance in Cambodia and to the funding of the Cambodian mine action centre through our assessed contribution to the UN transitional authority in Cambodia.
Political Parties (Funding)
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the information available to him on the systems of state funding for political parties in the G7 group of countries, and in the Council of Europe.
Mr. Garel-Jones : The information requested is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Commonwealth of Independent States
Mr. Whittingdale : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will set out the number of United Kingdom representatives in each of the constituent nations of the Commonwealth of Independent States.
Mr. Goodlad : The numbers of United Kingdom-based staff are as follows :
|Number
-----------------------------
Ukraine |19
Moscow |83
St. Petersburg |7
Kazakhstan |3
We propose to open posts in Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan and Belarus shortly. The other countries within the Commonwealth of Independent States are covered by United Kingdom staff based in Moscow.
Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe
Mr. Gill : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which states are in membership of the CSCE at the present time ; and which of these belonged in November 1990.
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Mr. Douglas Hogg : There are currently 53 states participating in the CSCE. A copy of the list has been placed in the Library of the House. This list also indicates which states belonged to the CSCE in November 1990.
Yugoslavia was suspended from participation in all CSCE activity in July 1992. The Czech Republic and Slovakia were admitted as separate countries on 1 January 1993. The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia was granted observer status at the committee of senior officials meeting on 28 April.
Mr. Gill : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the names and nationalities of the committee of senior officials of the CSCE.
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