§ Mr. Ralph Howellasked the Secretary of State for Social Services, further to his reply to the hon. Member for Norfolk, North, Official Report, 16th November, column 222, if children's earnings are entirely disregarded for purposes of assessing supplementary benefit entitlement; and if he will show the effects of such disregard on the net weekly income of a family with four children aged 16, 14, 12 and 10 years where the father is in 279W receipt of supplementary allowance, but where the two older children each earn £10 a week, and where the wife is earning £4 per week.
§ Mr. OrmeSchoolchildren's earnings are disregarded in assessing entitlement to supplementary benefit. If two children in a family earn £10 net a week each the total amount of money coming into the house each week is £20 greater than it would be if the children were not earning.