§ Mr. Mike Thomasasked the Secretary of State for Energy whether he will place in the Library such information as is at the disposal of his Department or of the industries concerned as to the pattern of electricity and gas consumption in Great Britain, particularly such information as relates to the level of domestic consumption to socio-economic status, income level, and nature of dwelling of the consumer.
§ Mr. VarleyThe most convenient source of information about the pattern of household fuel consumption is the Family Expenditure Survey. This is a continuous multi-purpose survey conducted by the Department of Employment into the income and expenditure of some 7,000 households in the United Kingdom. The results are published annually, and the most recent report is the one for 1973. The information is subject to sampling variation and estimates of this are given in Appendix 2. I have arranged for the extraction and tabulation of:
and these have been placed in the Library.
- (i) Household expenditure on fuel, light and power by weekly income
- (ii) Expenditure by type of tenure.
- (iii) Expenditure by region
§ Mr. Mike Thomasasked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will take steps to ensure that the proposed increases in gas and electricity charges are made in a manner consistent with his programme of energy conservation.
§ Mr. VarleyYes.