HC Deb 14 March 1969 vol 779 cc365-6W
Sir C. Osborne

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the internal purchasing power of the £ sterling for each successive year since 1914, taking 20s. as the figure for 1914.

Mr. Harold Lever

The figures are given in the table below. They are based on movements in the cost of living index up to 1938 and on the consumer price index from 1938 2to 1967, with a provisional figure for 1968 based on the index of retail prices. In view of the need to link different price series and of the considerable changes in the pattern of consumers' expenditure over this long period, the figures given should be regarded as giving only an approximate indication of the movements.

s. d.
1914 20 0
1915 16 4
1916 13 8
1917 11 5
1918 9 11
1919 9 4
1920 8 0
1921 8 10
1922 10 11
1923 11 6
1924 11 5
1925 11 5
1926 11 7
1927 11 11
1928 12 0
1929 12 2
1930 12 8
1931 13 7
1932 13 11
1933 14 4
1934 14 2
1935 14 0

s. d.
1936 13 7
1937 13 0
1938 12 10
1939 12 5
1940 10 3
1941 9 3
1942 8 6
1943 8 2
1944 8 0
1945 7 10
1946 7 7
1947 7 1
1948 6 7
1949 6 5
1950 6 3
1951 5 9
1952 5 5
1953 5 4
1954 5 3
1955 5 0
1956 4 10
1957 4 8
1958 4 7
1959 4 6
1960 4 6
1961 4 4
1962 4 2
1963 4 2
1964 4 0
1965 3 10
1966 3 9
1967 3 8
1968 3 6