§ Mr. Sproatasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his latest estimate of the percentage of central Government spending to be spent, respectively, in 1976–77, on education, housing, health and personal social services, roads and defence, respectively, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Aberdeen, South on 18th November 1976.
§ Mr. Joel BarnettExpenditure on education, housing, health and personal social services, roads and defence as proportions of total central Government expenditure in 1976–77 is estimated to be:
per cent. Education, libraries, science and arts 2.5 Housing 3.1 Health and personal social services 11.2 Roads 1.1 Defence 11.0
§ Mr. Sproatasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to his answers to the hon. Member for Aberdeen, South of 2nd November and 18th November 1976, if he will publish a table showing the percentage of central Government spending on all social security benefits, including unemployment benefit, in each of the EEC countries, respectively, in 1975, on as nearly comparable a basis as possible to that which shows the United Kingdom figure as 20.2 per cent.
§ Mr. Joel BarnettIn national accounts on the international standard basis, social security funds are treated as a separate60W sub-sector of general government, alongside central and local government. Comparison of central Government expenditure only in this field would therefore have no significance. Expenditure on social security benefits as a proportion of general Government expenditure in 1974 was as follows:
per cent Belgium (1) … 40.5 France … 43.0 Germany … 27.8 Italy (2) … 41.0 Netherlands … 42.1 United Kingdom (3) … 20.1 (1) includes transfers to non-profit making bodies; (2) 1973; (3) includes benefit paid abroad. The figures given are derived from the National Accounts of OECD Countries, 1974, in which the General Government figures do not include lending or capital transfers. Figures for 1975 are not available.