HC Deb 20 November 1974 vol 881 cc444-5W
Mr. Freud

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what estimate she has made of the effects on the required social security contributions, arising from a situation in which there was no real growth in the economy, and pay and cost of living increases were the same.

Mr. O'Malley

From April 1975 the income of the National Insurance Fund will increase as earnings rise and will broadly be sufficient for the retirement pension and other long-term benefits to be increased in line with the movement of earnings. This holds good unless there were significant increases in the numbers of beneficiaries in relation to the number of contributors whether earnings rise faster than prices or at the same rate as prices.