§ Mr. Lawsonasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish a table showing, for each of the last eight years, the average real weekly net income and the average real weekly take-home pay of a married man on average earnings with two children under 11 years of age, on the latest available price basis.
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§ Mr. Robert SheldonI will let the hon. Member have a reply as soon as possible.
§ Mr. Lawsonasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, further to the Written Answer to the hon. Member for Blaby on 21st February 1978, he will provide comparable end year figures for December 1967 to 1977 inclusive, at January 1978 prices, for real weekly take-home pay and real weekly net income.
§ Mr. Robert Sheldon,pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 6th March 1978; Vol. 945, c. 532], gave the following information:
The figures are as follows:
Real weekly take-home pay at January 1978 prices Real weekly net income at January 1978 prices £ £ December 1967 … 55.80 57.00 December 1968 … 55.00 57.60 December 1969 … 55.20 57.60 December 1970 … 62.90 65.10 December 1971 … 63.50 65.50 December 1972 … 68.30 70.20 December 1973 … 67.80 69.50 December 1974 … 70.60 72.10 December 1975 … 65.40 67.30 December 1976 … 63.40 65.00 December 1977 … 63.50 66.00 The figures have been calculated on the same basis as those given in my earlier reply to the hon. Member—[Vol. 944, cc. 616–7]—except that the figures have now been expressed at January 1978 prices.
For years before 1970 figures from the New Earnings Survey are not available and average earnings are the Department of Employment's estimates for full time male manual workers in October of each year, updated by the monthly index of average earnings to give an estimate for the following December.