§ Mr. Ralph Howellasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish a table, for each year since 1970, comparing movements in the retail price index with indices of income tax and national insurance payments (1970=100 in each case), for a single person, a married couple, and a married couple with two and four children, earning 50 per cent. and 100 per cent. of average earnings in each case.
§ Mr. Robert SheldonAssuming full implementation of the Budget proposals for 1977–78, the information requested is shown in the table below.
Average earnings have been taken to be the new Earnings Survey estimates of the average earnings of full-time adult male workers in all occupations, manual and non-manual, in April of each year, except for 1977–78 where the April 1976 estimate has been updated to April 1977 using the monthly index of average earnings.
For years prior to 1977–78 the tax figures take account of the tax on family allowances, and clawback, where appropriate.
The national insurance contribution rates used are those in effect in April of each year and assume that the employee was "not contracted out" of the graduated pension scheme in years prior to 1975–76.
The prices index used is the General Index of Retail Prices—All items, at April of each year.
It is not possible to give an index for tax alone based on 1970–71 for the married couples with children on 50 per cent. of average earnings, as there was no tax liability in the earlier years.
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Retail Prices Single Person Married couple Married couple with 2 childern not over 11 Married couple with 4 childern not over 11 Index (a) Tax(b) NIC(b) Tax+NIC(b) Tax(b) NIC(b) Tax+NIC(b) Tax(b NIC(b) Tax+NIC(b) Tax(b) NIC(b) Tax+NIC(b) 50 ℅ of Average Earnings— 1970–71 … 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 — 100 100 — 100 100 1971–72 … 109 116 106 113 139 106 122 — 106 106 — 106 106 1972–73 … 116 96 114 102 98 114 106 — 114 114 — 114 114 1973–74 … 127 130 125 129 169 125 146 — 125 136 — 125 125 1974–75 … 146 179 140 164 221 140 177 — 140 140 — 140 140 1975–76 … 178 279 144 232 392 144 263 — 144 304 — 144 176 1976–77 … 212 348 178 289 489 178 327 — 178 359 — 178 178 1977–78 … 249 367 197 308 498 197 342 — 197 459 — 197 273 100℅ of Average Earnings— 1970–71 … 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 1971–72 … 109 108 101 106 110 101 108 102 101 102 88 101 92 1972–73 … 116 110 125 113 113 125 116 105 125 110 92 125 102 1973–74 … 127 131 144 134 139 144 140 138 144 140 131 144 135 1974–75 … 146 169 164 168 176 164 173 169 164 168 148 164 153 1975–76 … 178 241 198 232 254 198 242 269 198 250 267 198 247 1976–77 … 212 290 244 281 305 244 292 316 244 297 300 244 284 1977–78 … 249 304 271 298 317 271 306 349 271 328 340 271 320 (a) April 1970 = 100. (b) 1970–71 = 100.