§ 41. Mr. Fallonasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the average amount invested by each individual (a) in personal housing through mortgage rent and repairs and (b) in his or her place of work, through direct share ownership.
§ Mr. MooreThe 1984 "Family Expenditure Survey" found that average weekly household expenditure on housing net of housing benefit, rebates and allowances, was £24.06, and that average weekly household expenditure on the purchase or alteration of dwellings, including mortgage payments, was £11.19*.
The best figures available for the extent of direct share ownership in the place of work are for employees in companies with Inland Revenue-approved all-employee share schemes. Up to 31 March 1985 an estimated 1¼ million employees had joined such schemes, acquiring shares or options on shares to an average initial value of approximately £1,200 each.
* Full definitions of these two categories are contained in Annex A of the Family Expenditure survey.