§ Miss Quennellasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will publish a table showing the average weekly earnings in the European Economic Community countries since 1966, expressed in 513W sterling, including bonuses, fringe benefits, etc., compared with the corresponding figures in the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. BryanI regret that the precise figures asked for are not available, but the following figures of average income per employed person, including earnings, social security payments and fringe benefits, have been published by the European Community Information Service and relate to 1967 and 1968.
Figures for 1966, 1969 and 1970 are not available.
International comparisons of this kind present many problems; they must be made in terms of a chosen currency and changes in the rate of exchange complicate the position. At the old exchange rate the figure for the United Kingdom for 1968 would have been 3,008. Furthermore there are differences in the purchasing power of the currencies and in the levels of direct and indirect taxation and of social benefits between one country and another.
AVERAGE INCOME PER EMPLOYED PERSON U.S. $ per year (in exchange rate then current) 1967 1968 Belgium … … 3,32 3,512 France … … 3,516 3,846 Germany … … 2,873 3,059 Italy … … … 2,415 2,588 Luxembourg … … 3,329 3,604 (1965) (1967) Netherlands … … 3,270 3,546 Community … … 2,994 3,224 United Kingdom … 2,716 2,578