§ Mr. Ralph HowellTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish figures for 1960, 1970, 1979, 1984 and 1988 for a married man with two children earning average male annual earnings, showing the length of time, after taking into account income tax, liability and national insurance contribution, necessary to pay for each of the following items(a) one lb. sugar, (b) one lb. back bacon, (c) one lb. beef sirloin, (d) one lb. fresh cod fillets, (e) 141b. potatoes, (f) 800g. sliced loaf, (g) one lb. butter, (h) one pint of fresh milk, (i) one dozen eggs, and (j) one lb. pork.
§ Mr. MajorThe information requested is provided in the table, 1971 is the earliest year for which figures are528W available. The calculations are based on a married man, with a non-earning wife, on average hourly earnings of all males on adult rates of pay (not average male earnings). Income tax liability and national insurance contribution have been deducted. Child tax allowances have been taken into account in calculating net earnings in 1971 and so for the later years, child benefit has been added for consistency.
Working time (minutes) 1971 1979 1984 1988 (a) One lb sugar 4 4 4 3 (b) One lb back bacon 30 34 27 21 (c) One lb beef sirloin 50 56 52 42 (d) One lb fresh cod fillets 24 32 24 27 (e) 14 lb potatoes (old whites loose) 24 26 37 23 (f) 800 g sliced loaf (white) 9 9 7 6 (g) One lb butter (New Zealand) 19 23 15 12 (h) One pint of fresh milk 5 4 4 3 (i) One dozen eggs (size 2) 26 20 17 14 (j) One lb pork (loin) 34 32 24 18