§ Earl Russellasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many people have incomes below (a) 20 per cent of average income; (b) 10 per cent of average income; and (c) 5 per cent of average income. [HL3177]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Social Security (Baroness Hollis of Heigham)The Households Below Average Income (HBAI) provides estimates of the number of individuals with household income below fractions of the Great Britain average. The fractions range from 40 to 100 per cent. Estimates are drawn from the Family Resources Survey. Income data at the very bottom of the income distribution are not regarded as sufficiently reliable to support estimates of the numbers below 5, 10 and 20 per cent of average income.
The number of individuals who lived in households with income below 40 per cent of the Great Britain average stood at 5 million in 1997–98, before the deduction of housing costs. The new edition of HBAI will be published on 13 July 2000 and will contain figures covering 1998–99.