§ Mr. Meacherasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give examples illustrating how, respectively, a single man, a married couple without children, a married couple with, respectively, one, two or three children, in each case with weekly earnings of £25, are at present benefited from a stated occupational sick pay scheme plus State sickness benefit; and what each of these households would receive in the same circumstances under a tax credits system.
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§ Mr. NottI am circulating in the OFFICIAL REPORT a table showing the position of the families concerned assuming that sickness had lasted for more than two weeks and that the occupational sick pay scheme would supplement State sickness benefit to the level of normal earnings:
INCOME FROM OCCUPATIONAL SICK PAY AND STATE SICKNESS BENEFIT ON EARNINGS OF £25 A WEEK At present Under Tax-Credits Single man £24.70 £21.50 Married couple £25.00 £23.50 Married couple plus 1 child £25.00 £25.50 Married couple plus 2 children £25.90* £27.50 Married couple plus 3 children £26.90* £29.50 * Including Family Allowances The fact that the single persons and married couple show a shortfall is due to the anomaly in the present system under which State sickness benefit is not chargeable to tax: so that if an occupational scheme provides for a full make-up of pay in the event of sickness the individual is better off financially when sick than when working.