HC Deb 20 April 1971 vol 815 cc371-3W
Mr. Arthur Lewis

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will bring up to date the table of figures of the

the reduction in the standard income tax and surtax, exemption from tax of children's investment income, higher child tax allowances, increased social service charges, rents, rates, fares, and value-added tax, family income supplement, and larger graduated National Insurance contributions.

Mr. Higgins

Meaningful figures covering all these variables cannot be estimated.

Mr. Arthur Lewis

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT a table of figures showing the effect of his autumn and spring Budget proposals on a man and wife with two children of four and six years of age with a total earned income of £2,500 per annum plus the family allowance, giving the tax deductions for 1970–71 compared with 1971–72 reduced taxation, increased child allowance higher National Insurance contributions, higher costs for school meals and changes in free milk, and accounting for the increased charges for prescriptions, dental and spectacle charges under the health charges scheme; and if he will give similar details for a man earning £30 per week, £900 per annum and £15,000 per annum.

Mr. Higgins

Following is the information:

per capita productivity of the European Free Trade Association and European Economic Community countries compared with Great Britain by taking account of the differences in internal purchasing powers in each of the countries and the movement between 1968 and 1969 in Germany and France resulting from devaluation in these countries.

Mr. Higgins

No. The necessary data are not available. It is generally recognised that the use of official exchange rates is not satisfactory for international comparisons of this type but the preparation of comparisons of internal purchasing power is a complex and time-consuming task. The United Nations Statistical Office is at present engaged on a series of comparisons of the internal purchasing power of the currencies of various pairs of countries, one such pair being the United Kingdom and the U.S.A. It is hoped that this work will eventually produce a better basis for international comparisons, but it is not yet possible to say when the results will be available.