Personal Taxation (Hansard, 20 June 1979)

§ Mr. Austin Mitchell

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what was the amount and percentage of weekly wages 581W paid in income tax by an unskilled worker with a non-working wife and two children, on the national average unskilled manual wage prevailing in that year, after the Budget in each of the following years: 1968, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1977 and 1978;

(2)what was the amount and percentage of weekly wage paid in income tax by a skilled worker with a non-working wife and two children, on the national average skilled wage prevailing in that year, after the Budget in each of the following

		Married with two children under 11 years	Married, no children, both working
		Male unskilled worker	Male unskilled worker	Skilled male and female manual worker
		Tax	Percentage of income paid in tax	Tax	Percentage of income paid in tax	Tax	Percentage of income paid in tax
		£		£		£
1968	…	3.27	12.6	1.10	5.8	6.62	18.1
1969	…	4.13	14.5	1.51	7.4	6.68	16.8
1971	…	4.73	14.0	1.99	8.1	8.80	18.1
1972	…	4.81	12.9	1.84	6.7	8.63	15.7
1973	…	6.38	14.9	3.19	9.9	10.99	17.5
1975	…	11.38	19.3	6.61	14.5	21.16	23.0
1976	…	12.73	18.8	7.81	14.5	25.16	23.5
1977	…	12.97	17.1	7.53	12.6	24.25	20.6
1978	…	15.25	16.7	9.29	12.7	25.62	19.2

The weekly earnings used in the calculations are as follows:

			Male skilled worker	Male unskilled worker	Female manual worker
			£	£	£
1968	…	…	25.20	17.90	11.30
1969	…	…	27.64	19.47	12.11
1971	…	…	32.93	23.84	15.80
1972	…	…	36.53	26.68	18.30
1973	…	…	41.82	31.19	21.16
1975	…	…	57.60	43.97	34.19
1976	…	…	66.28	52.23	40.61
1977	…	…	73.17	57.17	44.31
1978	…	…	83.06	65.00	50.03

The average earnings are the average of the Department of Employement's estimates of the average gross weekly earnings, by level of skill, of full-time male manual workers in the engineering industry in June of each year.

The average earnings figures used for manual female workers are the average earnings for full-time female manual workers, aged 18 and over in all industries, in October of each year.

Figures for the married man with children are expressed on a percentage of income—including family allowance or child benefit—to allow, so far as possible, for the change from child tax allowances to tax free child benefits.

582W

lowing years: 1968, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1977 and 1978;

(3) what was the amount and percentages of joint weekly wage paid in income tax by a skilled worker on national average skilled wage prevailing in that year with a working wife earning the national average wage for women manual workers, after the Budget in each of the following years: 1968, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1977 and 1978.