HC Deb 18 January 1967 vol 739 cc91-2W
Mr. Nott

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give the percentage of net national income at factor cost spent by all public authorities and the percentage of the working population employed by central and local government and public corporations in each of the years 1946 to 1965 with an estimate for 1966.

Mr. Diamond

[Pursuant to my reply of 21st December, Vol. 738, c. 360.] Public expenditure (excluding the operating expenditure of public corporations and other public trading bodies but including their capital formation) and employment in the public sector (as a percentage of the employed labour force) for the years 1949 to 1965 are shown below. Figures for earlier years and for 1966 are not available.

Total public expenditure (excluding debt interest) £ million *Employment in the public sector (as percentage of employed labour force)
1949 .. 25.4
1950 4,264 24.9
1951 5,167 26.4
1952 5,680 27.2
1953 5,906 26.8
1954 5,853 26.1
1955 6,181 25.2
1956 6,598 24.8
1957 6,990 24.6
1958 7,257 24.4
1959 7,785 24.1
1960 8,273 23.3
1961 9,171 23.1
1962 9,763 23.2
1963 10,389 23.2
1964 11,372 22.9
1965 12,598 22.7
.. not available.
* Employment in the public sector comprises employment by central government (including N.H.S.), local authorities and public corporation.

Total public expenditure includes payments (e.g., social security benefits, capital grants to industry) to other sectors of the economy which form part of the demand by those sectors on the national product. For this reason the relationship between total public expenditure and the national product does not provide a particularly useful measure of the share of national output taken by the public sector.

If, however, this comparison is made, it should be with gross national product at factor cost, because public expenditure, as defined in the national accounts, includes expenditure on fixed assets gross of capital consumption. Table 1 of the Blue Book on National Income and Expenditure, 1966, shows gross national product at factor cost for the years 1946 to 1965.