§ Mrs. Wiseasked the Secretary of State for Social Services how much it would cost to extend to a married woman, who is in employment and paying full contributions and whose husband remains at home to look after the children, the right to claim benefits for dependants, that is husband and children, if she becomes sick or unemployed.
§ Mr. DeakinsI regret that insufficient information is available to enable us to make any actual estimate though, as my hon. Friend knows from the letter sent to her on 20th April, we accept that, on certain assumptions, the cost would be small. In practice, however, given the wide variation in family circumstances over time, it would not in our view be possible to limit a provision only to the specific permanent "rôle reversal" cases she has in mind: and the cost of equal rights for men and women in claiming dependency benefits could be up to £30 million a year. I am, however, writing to my hon. Friend explaining the problems involved.