HC Deb 11 December 1996 vol 287 cc286-7W
Mr. Ainger

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many pensioner households there were in which three quarters or more of the total income was derived from national insurance retirement and similar pensions and housing and other benefits in supplement to or instead of such pensions in each of the last five financial years. [6589]

Mr. Heald

The information is in the table.

Calendar Year Number of Pensioners Units
1988 3,750,000
1989 3,750,000
1990 3,500,000
1992 3,500,000
1993 3,600,000

Notes:

1. The pensioners' incomes series gives estimates for pensioner units. A pensioner unit is defined as being either a single person over state pension age or a couple where the man is over state pension age (SPA).

2. Income from state benefits has been calculated as income from national insurance benefits and all other benefits that may be received above SPA, such as income related benefits and disability benefits.

Source:

The source of these estimates is the pensioners' incomes series, which is based mainly on data from the family expenditure survey carried out over calendar years and covers the whole of the United Kingdom. The figures given are for the last five calendar years for which pensioners' incomes series data are available, and rounded to the nearest 50,000.

Mr. Michael Brown

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when he plans to publish new information on pensioners. [8933]

Mr. Heald

The "Pensioners' Income Series 1994/5" will be published by the Government Statistical Service at 9.30 am on 12 December. Copies will be available in the Library.