Family Income Supplement (Hansard, 10 February 1975)

§ Mr. George
asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if she will publish in the Official Report the administrative costs for the family income supplement scheme for each year since the scheme was introduced.

§ Mr. Alec Jones
The information is as follows:

1971–72 1972–73 1973–74

£460,000 £640,000 £720,000

§ Mr. George
asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what has been the number eligible for, and the number 44W claiming, the family income supplement for each year since the scheme was introduced; and if she will distinguish between one- and two-parent families.

§ Mr. Alec Jones
The number of families receiving family income supplement were as follows:

Two-parent families One-parent families

End of 1971 47,000 24,000

End of 1972 48,000 34,000

End of 1973 50,000 45,000

End of 1974^* 33,000 39,000

^* Provisional figure for November 1974, the latest available.

Estimates of the number of families who are entitled to family income supplement are based on very small samples. It is estimated that in 1972 the number receiving the supplement represented about half the number eligible; the evidence suggests that in 1973 the number receiving the supplement represented more than half of the number eligible. The evidence does not enable us to make separate estimates for one- and two-parent families. No estimates are available at present for 1974 and no estimate can be made for the first few months of the scheme in 1971.

§ Mr. George
asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if she will publish in the Official Report the number of children covered by the family income supplement scheme for each year since the scheme was introduced, distinguishing between the number of children whose parents are claiming, and not claiming, respectively; and if she will further divide this information into one- and two-parent families.

§ Mr. Alec Jones
Estimates of the numbers of children in families receiving family income supplement are as follows:

Two-parent families One-parent families

End of 1971 139,000 37,000

End of 1972 133,000 50,000

End of 1973 150,000 71,000

End of 1974^* 104,000 64,000

^* Provisional figures for November 1974, the latest available.

Estimates of the number of families, and the number of children in those families, who are entitled to family income supplement are based on very small samples. It is estimated that in 1972 45W about half the families entitled to the supplement were receiving the benefit. The evidence suggests that in 1973 more than half the families were receiving the benefit. The evidence does not enable us to separate estimates for one- and two-parent families. No estimates are available at the present for 1974 and no estimate can be made for the first months of the scheme in 1971.

§ Mr. George
asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what amounts have been spent on advertising the family income supplement scheme for each year since the scheme's introduction.

§ Mr. Alec Jones
The expenditure on advertising family income supplement was:

Thousands

Type of Family

All Families Two-Parent Families One-Parent Families Headed by a Man One-Parent Families Headed by a Woman

Awards current at

Total Income of Family at Date of Claim October 1973 April 1974 October 1973 April 1974 October 1973 April 1974 October 1973 April 1974

All Ranges of Income … 101 76 55 37 1 1 45 39

Under £9.00 … … … 2 1 — — — — 1 1

£9.00–£9.99 … … … 1 — — — — — 1 —

£10.00–£10.99 … … 2 1 — — — — 1 1

£11.00–£11.99 … … 2 1 — — — — 1 1

£12.00–£12.99 … … 3 2 1 — — — 2 1

£13.00–£13.99 … … 4 2 1 — — — 3 2

£14.00–£14.99 … … 5 3 1 — — — 4 2

£15.00–£15.99 … … 6 4 2 1 — — 5 3

£16.00–£16.99 … … 7 5 3 1 — — 5 4

£17.00–£17.99 … … 9 5 3 1 — — 5 4

£18.00–£18.99 … … 10 6 5 2 — — 5 5

£19.00–£19.99 … … 10 7 5 2 — — 4 4

£20.00–£20.99 … … 9 8 6 4 — — 3 4

£21.00–£21.99 … … 7 5 5 3 — — 2 2

£22.00–£22.99 … … 6 5 5 4 — — 1 2

£23.00–£23.99 … … 5 5 4 4 — — 1 1

£24.00–£24.99 … … 4 3 3 3 — — — 1

£25.00–£25.99 … … 3 3 3 3 — — — 1

£26.00–£26.99 … … 2 2 2 2 — — — —

£27.00–£27.99 … … 2 2 2 2 — — — —

£28.00–£28.99 … … 1 2 1 1 — — — —

£29.00–£29.99 … … 1 1 1 1 — — — —

£30.00 and over … … 2 3 2 2 — — — —

§ Mr. George
asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if she will list in the Official Report the awards current at the end of December 1973 and 1974 for the
46W

£

1971 310,000

1972 325,000

1973 161,000

1974 124,000

§ Mr. George
asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if she will list in the Official Report the awards under the family income supplement scheme analysed by type of family and total income of family for 1973 and 1974, as set out in table 32.36 of Social Trends, 1973.

§ Mr. Alec Jones
Information relating to October 1973 and April 1974, the latest date for which information is available, is as follows:
family income supplement scheme, as set out in table 32.30 in Social Trends, 1973.

§ Mr. Alec Jones
Information for December 1974 is not yet available. The following table relates to December 1973: 47W

Amount of family income supplement in payment (£)

All amounts Under 1.00 1.00–1.90 2.00–2.90 3.00–3.90 4.00–4.90 5.00–5.90 6.00 (maximum) Average amount
Thousands £

All types of family:

All families … … … … 95 12 25 23 16 10 7 1 2.55

With 1 child … … … 38 4 10 9 7 4 3 N.A. 2.61

With 2 children … … … 23 4 7 6 3 2 2 N.A. 2.35

With 3 children … … … 15 2 4 4 2 1 1 1 2.48

With 4 children … … … 10 2 2 2 2 1 — — 2.45

With 5 children … … … 5 — 1 1 1 1 — — 2.75

With 6 or more … … … 4 — 1 1 1 1 — — 3.28

Two-parent families:

All families … … … … 50 8 15 13 8 4 2 1 2.31

With 1 child … … … 10 2 3 2 1 1 — N.A. 2.19

With 2 children … … … 12 2 4 3 1 1 1 N.A. 2.65

With 3 children … … … 11 2 3 3 2 1 — — 2.24

With 4 children … … … 8 1 2 2 1 1 — — 2.34

With 5 children … … … 5 — 1 1 1 — — — 2.66

With 6 or more … … … 4 — 1 1 1 1 — — 3.22

One-parent families headed by a man:

All families … … … … 1 — — — — — — — 2.36

With 1 child … … … — — — — — — — N.A. 2.33

With 2 children … … … — — — — — — — N.A. 2.11

With 3 or more … … … — — — — — — — — 2.67

One-parent families headed by a woman:

All families … … … … 43 4 9 10 9 6 5 — 2.88

With 1 child … … … 28 3 6 7 6 3 3 N.A. 2.77

With 2 children … … … 10 1 2 2 2 1 1 N.A. 2.76

With 3 or more … … … 6 — 1 1 1 1 1 — 3.24

48W 49W

§ Mr. George
asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if she will set out the awards and rejections for the family income supplement scheme for 1973 and

1973 1974

Total … … … … … … … … … … 167,966 148,021

Number of awards:

New and repeat … … … … … … … 52,645 36,329

Renewal … … … … … … … … 41,576 36,020

Number of rejections:

New and repeat … … … … … … … 57,741 51,180

Reason for rejection:

Residence … … … … … … 14 —

Not in full-time work … … … … … 14,162 10,852

Not normally in full-time work … … … 535 1,026

No reckonable children … … … … 1,601 1,276

Excess income … … … … … … 31,373 30,854

Failure to provide information … … … 10,056 7,172

Renewal … … … … … … … … 14,000 22,607

Reason for rejection:

Residence … … … … … … 4 1

Not in full-time work … … … … … 3,022 3,869

Not normally in full-time work … … … 63 216

No reckonable children … … … … 350 454

Excess income … … … … … … 9,263 16,432

Failure to provide information … … … 1,298 1,635

Claims withdrawn … … … … … … … 2,004 1,885

§ Mr. George
asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what have been the amounts paid out under the family income supplement scheme for each year since the scheme was introduced; and if she will subdivide this sum between one- and two-parent families for each year since the scheme was introduced.

§ Mr. Alec Jones
It is estimated that the amounts paid out for each calendar year since the start of the scheme are as follows:

£ millions

Year All Two-parent families One-parent families

1971 2.3 1.3 1.0

1972 9.2 5.1 4.1

1973 12.0 6.0 6.0

1974 12.2 5.4 6.8

§ Mr. George
asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if she will publish in the Official Report the number of staff required to establish and to administer
50W
1974, as listed in table 32.5 in Social Trends, 1973.

§ Mr. Alec Jones
Following is the information:
the family income supplement scheme for each year since the scheme was introduced.

§ Mr. Alec Jones
During the initial take-on period in 1971 approximately 200 staff were employed in the family income supplement branch at Blackpool central office augmented by the use of casual staff in local offices. The work is now entirely centralised at Blackpool. The total number of staff employed in subsequent years is approximately as follows:

1972 140

1973 135

1974 130

§ Mr. George
asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if she will list in the Official Report the prescribed income levels for the family income supplement for a one-child, two-child, four-child and six-child family, for each year since the scheme was introduced; and if she will also present this information as a percentage of average earnings.
51W

§ Mr. Alec Jones
The following are the details:

One Child Two Children Four Children Six Children

Date Income Levels Percentage of Average Earnings Income Levels Percentage of Average Earnings Income Levels Percentage of Average Earnings Income Levels Percentage of Average Earnings

£ £ £ £

August 1971 … 18.00 59 20.00 65 24.00 78 28.00 91

April 1972 … 20.00 61 22.00 67 26.00 79 30.00 91

April 1973 … 21.00 56 23.50 63 28.50 76 32.50 86

October 1973 … 21.50 53 24.00 59 29.00 71 34.00 83

July 1974 … 25.00 53 28.00 60 34.00 72 40.00 85

Note: Average earnings are the estimated average earnings of male adult full time manual workers in manufacturing and certain other industries as determined by the Department of Employment's regular October inquiry. Figures for months other than October have been estimated by using the monthly index of average earnings as published in the Department of Employment Gazette.

§ Mr. George
asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what have been the prescribed income levels for the family income supplement for one-child, two-child and four-child families, respectively,

One Child Two Children Four Children

Date Prescribed income level Tax threshold Prescribed income level Tax threshold Prescribed income level Tax threshold

£ £ £ £ £ £

August 1971 … 18.00 15.33 20.00 18.12 24.00 24.33

April 1972 … … 20.00 18.67 22.00 21.46 26.00 27.67

April 1973 … … 21.00 18.75 23.50 21.44 28.50 27.50

October 1973 … 21.50 18.75 24.00 21.44 29.00 27.50

July 1974 … … 25.00 21.25 28.00 24.87 34.00 32.77

Note: Tax thresholds relate to two-parent families with children in the following age bands:—

One child: under 11.

Two children: both under 11.

Four children: two under 11, two 11–15.

§ Mr. George
asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many persons are claiming the family income supplement of, respectively: 10p to 99p, £1 to £1.99, £2 to £2.99, £3 to £3.99, £4 to £4.99, £5 to £5.99and £6 to £7; and in each case what is the total number of persons claiming and estimated to be eligible, respectively.

§ Mr. Alec Jones
The following table relates to the number of families receiving family income supplement split into the various ranges of amounts. It is based on provisional figures for November 1974, the latest date for which information is available. An estimate of the number of families eligible for FIS during 1974 cannot be made until data from the 1974 Family Expenditure Survey is available:

Number receiving

Weekly assessment FIS

Less than £1 5,000

£1.00—£1.99 8,000

£2.00—£2.99 15,000

£3.00—£3.99 16,000

£4.00—£4.99 12,000

£5.00—£5.99 12,000

£6.00—£7.00 4,000

TOTAL RECIPIENTS 72,000

52W
together with the tax thresholds for these families, for each year since the scheme was introduced.

§ Mr. Alec Jones
The details are as follows:

§ Mr. George
asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if she will publish in the Official Report the average size of payments for family income supplement for each year since the scheme's inception; and if she will also express these payments as percentages of average earnings for each of the years under consideration.

§ Mr. Alec Jones
The figures are:

Calendar year Average FIS payment As per cent. of average earnings^*

1971 £1.73 5.6

1972 £2.05 6.0

1973 £2.47 6.3

1974 (11 months)† £2.93 6.4

^* Average earnings are the estimated average earnings of male adult-full-time manual workers in manufacturing and certain other industries as determined by the Department of Employment's regular October inquiry. Figures for months other than October have been estimated by using the monthly index of average earnings as published in the Department of Employment Gazette

† Information for full year not yet available.

§ Mr. George
asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if she will list in the Official Report the number of appeals to tribunals on disputed decisions on the family income supplement scheme 53W for each year since its inception; and if she will set out the results of the appeals.

1971 1972 1973 1974

Appeals heard … … 1,495 2,476 1,515 1,636

Decision confirmed … … 1,465 2,309 1,419 1,547

Decision reversed … … 30 167 96 89

	Two-parent families	One-parent families
End of 1971	47,000	24,000
End of 1972	48,000	34,000
End of 1973	50,000	45,000
End of 1974^*	33,000	39,000
^* Provisional figure for November 1974, the latest available.

Thousands
				Type of Family
				All Families	Two-Parent Families	One-Parent Families Headed by a Man	One-Parent Families Headed by a Woman
				Awards current at
Total Income of Family at Date of Claim	October 1973	April 1974	October 1973	April 1974	October 1973	April 1974	October 1973	April 1974
All Ranges of Income	…	101	76	55	37	1	1	45	39
Under £9.00	…	…	…	2	1	—	—	—	—	1	1
£9.00–£9.99	…	…	…	1	—	—	—	—	—	1	—
£10.00–£10.99	…	…	2	1	—	—	—	—	1	1
£11.00–£11.99	…	…	2	1	—	—	—	—	1	1
£12.00–£12.99	…	…	3	2	1	—	—	—	2	1
£13.00–£13.99	…	…	4	2	1	—	—	—	3	2
£14.00–£14.99	…	…	5	3	1	—	—	—	4	2
£15.00–£15.99	…	…	6	4	2	1	—	—	5	3
£16.00–£16.99	…	…	7	5	3	1	—	—	5	4
£17.00–£17.99	…	…	9	5	3	1	—	—	5	4
£18.00–£18.99	…	…	10	6	5	2	—	—	5	5
£19.00–£19.99	…	…	10	7	5	2	—	—	4	4
£20.00–£20.99	…	…	9	8	6	4	—	—	3	4
£21.00–£21.99	…	…	7	5	5	3	—	—	2	2
£22.00–£22.99	…	…	6	5	5	4	—	—	1	2
£23.00–£23.99	…	…	5	5	4	4	—	—	1	1
£24.00–£24.99	…	…	4	3	3	3	—	—	—	1
£25.00–£25.99	…	…	3	3	3	3	—	—	—	1
£26.00–£26.99	…	…	2	2	2	2	—	—	—	—
£27.00–£27.99	…	…	2	2	2	2	—	—	—	—
£28.00–£28.99	…	…	1	2	1	1	—	—	—	—
£29.00–£29.99	…	…	1	1	1	1	—	—	—	—
£30.00 and over	…	…	2	3	2	2	—	—	—	—

Amount of family income supplement in payment (£)
					All amounts	Under 1.00	1.00–1.90	2.00–2.90	3.00–3.90	4.00–4.90	5.00–5.90	6.00 (maximum)	Average amount
					Thousands	£
All types of family:
All families	…	…	…	…	95	12	25	23	16	10	7	1	2.55
With 1 child	…	…	…	38	4	10	9	7	4	3	N.A.	2.61
With 2 children	…	…	…	23	4	7	6	3	2	2	N.A.	2.35
With 3 children	…	…	…	15	2	4	4	2	1	1	1	2.48
With 4 children	…	…	…	10	2	2	2	2	1	—	—	2.45
With 5 children	…	…	…	5	—	1	1	1	1	—	—	2.75
With 6 or more	…	…	…	4	—	1	1	1	1	—	—	3.28
Two-parent families:
All families	…	…	…	…	50	8	15	13	8	4	2	1	2.31
With 1 child	…	…	…	10	2	3	2	1	1	—	N.A.	2.19
With 2 children	…	…	…	12	2	4	3	1	1	1	N.A.	2.65
With 3 children	…	…	…	11	2	3	3	2	1	—	—	2.24
With 4 children	…	…	…	8	1	2	2	1	1	—	—	2.34
With 5 children	…	…	…	5	—	1	1	1	—	—	—	2.66
With 6 or more	…	…	…	4	—	1	1	1	1	—	—	3.22
One-parent families headed by a man:
All families	…	…	…	…	1	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2.36
With 1 child	…	…	…	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	N.A.	2.33
With 2 children	…	…	…	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	N.A.	2.11
With 3 or more	…	…	…	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2.67
One-parent families headed by a woman:
All families	…	…	…	…	43	4	9	10	9	6	5	—	2.88
With 1 child	…	…	…	28	3	6	7	6	3	3	N.A.	2.77
With 2 children	…	…	…	10	1	2	2	2	1	1	N.A.	2.76
With 3 or more	…	…	…	6	—	1	1	1	1	1	—	3.24

£ millions
Year	All	Two-parent families	One-parent families
1971	2.3	1.3	1.0
1972	9.2	5.1	4.1
1973	12.0	6.0	6.0
1974	12.2	5.4	6.8

		One Child	Two Children	Four Children	Six Children
Date	Income Levels	Percentage of Average Earnings	Income Levels	Percentage of Average Earnings	Income Levels	Percentage of Average Earnings	Income Levels	Percentage of Average Earnings
		£		£		£		£
August 1971	…	18.00	59	20.00	65	24.00	78	28.00	91
April 1972	…	20.00	61	22.00	67	26.00	79	30.00	91
April 1973	…	21.00	56	23.50	63	28.50	76	32.50	86
October 1973	…	21.50	53	24.00	59	29.00	71	34.00	83
July 1974	…	25.00	53	28.00	60	34.00	72	40.00	85
Note: Average earnings are the estimated average earnings of male adult full time manual workers in manufacturing and certain other industries as determined by the Department of Employment's regular October inquiry. Figures for months other than October have been estimated by using the monthly index of average earnings as published in the Department of Employment Gazette.

	Number receiving
Weekly assessment	FIS
Less than £1	5,000
£1.00—£1.99	8,000
£2.00—£2.99	15,000
£3.00—£3.99	16,000
£4.00—£4.99	12,000
£5.00—£5.99	12,000
£6.00—£7.00	4,000
TOTAL RECIPIENTS	72,000

Calendar year	Average FIS payment	As per cent. of average earnings^*
1971	£1.73	5.6
1972	£2.05	6.0
1973	£2.47	6.3
1974 (11 months)†	£2.93	6.4
^* Average earnings are the estimated average earnings of male adult-full-time manual workers in manufacturing and certain other industries as determined by the Department of Employment's regular October inquiry. Figures for months other than October have been estimated by using the monthly index of average earnings as published in the Department of Employment Gazette
† Information for full year not yet available.