§ Mr. Ralph Howellasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish figures showing the number of people who paid income tax in 1950, 1960, 1965, and each year since 1970, including an estimate for 1978–79.
§ Mr. Robert SheldonThe figures are as follows:
'000s 1950–51 … 15,800 1960–61 … 19,250 1965–66 … 19,330 1970–71 … 20,040 1971–72 … 19,680 1972–73 … 18,930 1973–74 … 19,810 1974–75 … 20,530 1975–76 … 20,920 1976–77 (provisional) … 21,170 1977–78 (provisional) … 20,410 1978–79 (estimated) … 21,040 Married couples are counted as one.