§ Mr. Hannanasked the Minister of Social Security what increase she estimates to be necessary in the weekly National Insurance contributions of all workers in Scotland and Wales in order to provide a £2 increase in weekly retirement pensions in those two countries, respectively.
§ Mrs. Hart:The cost in Great Britain of increasing the standard rate retirement pension for a single person by £2 and other rates of retirement pension (but not other benefits) in proportion could be met by increasing the employed person's contribution by about 5s. a week provided that the contributions of employers, self-employed persons and non-employed persons and the Exchequer supplement were proportionately increased. No separate estimates for Scotland and Wales are available because there is no separate analysis in sufficient detail of the insured population of those countries, for example of contribution categories.