§ 21. Mr. Kaufmanasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the purchasing power of the £ sterling now, taking it as 100p on 18th June, 1970.
§ Mr. HigginsTaking the value of the £ sterling as 100p in mid-June, 1970, its purchasing power in mid-February, 1971, the latest date for which information is available, is estimated at 94½p. This comparison is based on the movement in the General Index of Retail Prices.
§ Mr. KaufmanWithout my asking the hon. Gentleman to anticipate his right hon. Friend's Budget Statement, would he nevertheless ask the Chancellor to include in his Budget a declaration making it clear that any tax concessions or social service benefits in the Budget have already lost one-eighteenth of their value as a result of the inflation over which the Tory Government have complacently presided?
§ Mr. HigginsI have rarely heard such a silly statement as the statement that we are complacent about this issue. What we are trying to do is to put right the mistakes of the previous Administration.
§ Sir Harmar NichollsWill the Minister bear in mind that, taking into account the dismal, indeed disastrous, inheritance that this Government had, the nation will congratulate the Government on containing it at that figure?
§ Mr. HigginsI appreciate what my hon. Friend says. My feeling is that public opinion is very much behind the policy which we are now pursuing of reversing the escalating nature of this trend.
§ Mr. SwainDoes the hon. Gentleman expect this trend of depreciation to continue? If not, what steps do the Government intend to take to halt it or to reverse the trend?
§ Mr. HigginsAs I have indicated, we are determined to reverse this trend, and the entire economic policy being pursued by the Government is designed to do precisely that.