§ Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will give, for each of the calendar months in 1970, the number of recipients of the various stated social welfare benefits and the amounts of such benefits paid; and, taking 1st January, 1970, as then having a purchasing value of 100, what was the rise or fall in the purchasing value of these benefits in each month compared with 1st January, 1970.
§ Sir K. JosephStatistics of the number of recipients of most social security benefits are not collected monthly. The numbers of beneficiaries under the various schemes in December, 1969, and December, 1970, and the average monthly costs for the first 10 months of 1970 are estimated to have been as follows.
Recipients (millions) December Average monthly expenditure in 1970 £m 1969 1970 National Insurance (including industrial Injuries) Benefits 9.43 9.64 220 Family allowances 4.19 4.23 28 War Pensions 0.54 0.52 11 Supplementary Benefits 2.69 2.77 40 From January, 1970, to November, 1970, on the basis of the General Index of Retail Prices, the value of benefits
142Win each of the months October, 1969, to September, 1970, together with major intermediate phases (costing £500,000 or more) contributing to such hospitals were:
other than supplementary benefits fell by 5.9 per cent. Supplementary benefits were increased in November, 1970, and on the basis of the Index, less housing costs, were then 2.2 per cent. higher in real value than they were in January, 1970.