§ Mr. Llewellynasked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance whether he will publish statistics showing the real purchasing power of retirement pensions for each of the years 1945 to 1959.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterFollowing are the figures:
VALUE OF RETIREMENT PENSIONS AT OCTOBER IN EACH OF THE YEARS 1945 TO 1958 AND AT MARCH, 1959, EXPRESSED AS A PERCENTAGE OF THE VALUE OF 26s. IN OCTOBER, 1946 Nominal Value Real Value at October, 1946 prices Real Value as proportion of October, 1946 value (per. cent) s. d. 10s. in October, 1945* 10 0 38 26s. in October, 1946 26 0 100 26s. in October, 1947 25 8 99 26s in October, 1948 24 0 92 26s. in October, 1949 23 2 89 26s. in October, 1950 22 7 87 30s. in October, 1951 23 3 89 32s. 6d. in October, 1952 23 7 91 32s. 6d. in October, 1953 23 2 89 32s. 6d. in October, 1954 22 7 87 40s. in October, 1955 26 5 102 40s. in October, 1956 25 4 97 40s. in October, 1957 24 4 94 50s. in October, 1958 29 9 114 50s. in March, 1959 29 7 114 * Payable without any condition of retirement
§ Mr. Leaveyasked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance what is the maximum sum which a man who was 65 years of age on 1st January, 1959, can have paid in State insurance contributions towards retirement; how much, on the basis of current life expectations, such a man can be expected to draw as a retirement pension, assuming the single rate of 50s.; and if he will give comparable figures in respect of a married man.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterThe maximum sum which an employed man who was 65 years of age on 1st January, 1959, could have paid in State insurance contributions towards retirement (including an element in the contributions under the Contributory Pensions Acts for widows and orphans pensions) is about £97. His68W employer would have contributed an approximately equal amount.
A single man could expect to draw, on average, about £1,600 in retirement pension at the current rate.
A married man and his wife, if she were five years younger than himself, could between them expect to draw about £3,500.