§ Mr. Pendryasked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) how many workers are receiving family income supplement in England, Wales and Scotland; and how many workers he estimates are eligible to receive family income supplement in each country;
(2) what percentage of male full-time workers are eligible to receive family income supplement in the following areas of employment (a) agriculture, (b) hotels and catering, (c) retail distribution, (d) the Civil Service, (e) local government, and (f) the National Health Service.
§ Mr. OrmeEstimates of the numbers of families eligible for family income supplement are based on a Department of Health and Social Security analysis of information recorded by respondents to the family expenditure survey; this444W inevitably gives rise to a very considerable time lag. In any event, because of the size of the sample of low income families, these estimates are available only for Great Britain as a whole and I regret that it is not possible to identify those in particular areas or occupations who might be eligible.
The numbers of families receiving family income supplement at the end of March 1978, the latest date for which this information is available, were as follows:
England 77,740 Wales 5,660 Scotland 11,420 Great Britain 94,820