SOCIAL SERVICES (EXPENDITURE). (Hansard, 2 July 1940)

§ Captain Crookshank

I have reached the conclusion that the need for economy in labour and paper makes it necessary to suspend during the war the printing and publication of the full return. But in order that information should continue to be available on this very important matter, I propose to circulate in the OFFICIAL REPORT a statement giving the main new figures which would have been included in this year's return.

Following is the statement.:

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PUBLIC SOCIAL SERVICES.
TOTAL EXPENDITURE UNDER CERTAIN ACTS OF PARLIAMENT.
Other than expenditure out of loans for capital purposes or out of capital receipts.
Note.—This Statement gives the expenditure on Public Social Services in 1937 and 1938, the latest years for which details are available, which would have been included in Part I of the return to be published in continuation of Command 5906 of November, 1938. Reference should be made to Command 5906 for comparable expenditure in earlier years and for information as to the basis on which the return is compiled, but it should be observed that the explanatory notes given in that return are not now accurate in all respects.
Service.	England and Wales.	Scotland.	1937 (or latest available year) Great Britain.	Total number of persons directly benefiting from the expenditure included in Column 5.
Financial Year commencing 1st April.	Financial Year, commencing 1st April.
1937 (or latest available year).	1938 (estimated).	1937 (or latest available year).	1938 (estimated).
	(1)	(2)	(3)	(4)	(5)	(6)
(a) Unemployment Insurance and Unemployment Assistance Acts:	£000	£000	£000	£000	£000	England and Wales	Scotland
(i) Unemployment Benefit, etc., General Scheme	39,044	56,237	5,683	6,993	44,727	11,846,000^*	1,398,000^*
(ii) Unemployment Benefit, etc., Agricultural Scheme	646	947	116	158	762	572,000^*	91,000^*
(iii) Unemployment Allowances	33,114	32,193	8,291	7,459	41,405	18,883,000^*	2,244,000^*
(b) National Health Insurance Acts	35,808†	36,600†	4,l29†	4,150†	39,937
(c) Widows', Orphans' and Old Age Contributory Pensions Acts.	41,904‡	42,731‡	4,996‡	5,063‡	46,900	1,971,800	243,388
(d) Old Age Pensions Acts	41,177	43,330	4,861	5,085	46,038	1,756,000	207,000
(e) War Pensions Acts and the Ministry of Pensions Act	34,555	33,744	3,803	3,692	38,358	769,000	86,850
(f) Education Acts	104,110	107,556	15,124	15,446	119,234	7,035,183	979,147
(g) Physical Training and Recreation Act	45	191	9	30	54	Not available	Not available
(h) Acts relating to Approved Schools	748	875	153	155	901	8,624	2,001
(i) Public Health Acts so far as they relate to:
(i) Hospitals and Treatment of Disease	15,770	Not available	1,709	1,689	17,479	Not available	Not available
(ii) Maternity and Child Welfare Work	3,759	407	432	4,166	Not available	Not available
(j) Housing Acts	38,274	6,859	7,411	45,133	—	—
(k) Acts relating to the Relief of the Poor	41,832	5,646	5,884	47,478	1,407,555	235,765
(l) Lunacy and Mental Treatment Acts	3,294	1,492	1,549	7,971	129,975	21,692
(m) Mental Deficiency Acts	3,185	Not available
Totals	437,265	354,404	63,278	65,196	500,543
^* Numbers given are those of insured persons—under National Health Insurance Acts only those between ages of 16 and 64. See paragraph 6 on page 5 of Command 5906.
† The figures given in columns 1 and 3 and columns 2 and 4 relate to the calendar years 1938 and 1939 respectively.
‡ These figures refer to expenditure from, and receipts into, the Pensions Account and the Pensions (Scotland) Account. Surpluses and deficits in the Accounts are dealt with by transfers to and from the Treasury Pensions Account which covers both England and Wales and Scotland, and into which an annual contribution is paid from the Exchequer. For the financial year 1937, the amount of the Exchequer contribution was £16,000,000.

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