§ 19. Mr. Ralph Howellasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his latest estimate of the total amount of income tax deducted from persons whose income is so low that they qualify for family income supplement and other statutory allowances such as rate rebate.
§ Mr. BiffenThe information requested is not available from tax records, which do not, for example, indicate whether a taxpayer is also a ratepayer.
251WHowever, on the broad assumption that married couples, the elderly single and single-parent families are all ratepayers and excluding other single persons, it can be estimated that the tax liability of persons eligible for rate rebates might be in the region of £900 million at 1980–81 income levels.
Rate rebate has been chosen for this calculation since most people eligible for other means-tested benefits would also be eligible for rate rebate. The calculation is based on average rates for the United Kingdom.