§ Mr. WicksTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the average amount of all social security and related benefits paid to those on(a) the lowest decile and (b) the second lowest decile of earnings; and what percentage of total earnings this represents for each year since 1979.
§ Mr. BurtThe available information is in the table.
The average amounts of social security and related benefits shown are for those in each of the lowest two deciles of earnings. The average benefit income is then presented as a percentage of average earnings for each decile.
Average amount of benefit income in the lowest two deciles of earnings and these amounts as a percentage of average earnings in the lowest two deciles. Average amount of benefit income in: Average amount of benefit income as a percentage of average earnings in: Lowest decile of earnings £ per week Second lowest decile of earnings £ per week Lowest decile of earnings Per cent. Second lowest decile of earnings Per cent. 1979 46 13 101 12 1981 49 15 121 15 1987 46 17 99 16 1988–9 38 13 74 11 1990–1 44 17 89 14 1991–2 49 21 108 18 Notes:
1. The analysis is on a benefit unit basis: a benefit unit being a single adult or a couple together with any dependent children. All benefit units reporting some earnings have been ranked by their level of gross earnings; the lowest and second lowest deciles of earnings have been selected from these rankings. Earnings and benefit income are the averages of the amounts for the requested deciles. Earnings are gross of income tax and national insurance contributions. For employees, earnings relate to the usual gross amount. Earnings include income of the self-employed which relates to profit or loss over the latest 12-month period for which information is available.
2. Benefit income includes all income-related and non-income-related benefits plus the value of free school meals, free welfare milk and free school milk.
3. The source of the data is the households below average income datasets for 1979, 1981, 1987, 1988–89, 1990–91 and 1991–92, where for example 1991–92 is the combined calendar years of 1991 and 1992. Data for the intervening years are not available.
4. All benefit income figures are rounded to the nearest pound and are expressed in April 1994 prices.