§ Mr. Beithasked the Secretary of State for Employment why commodities which are regarded by Her Majesty's Government as injurious to health, namely tobacco and alcohol, continue to be included in the calculation of the cost of living index.
§ Mr. GoldingThe construction of the retail price index follows the recommendations of the Retail Prices Index Advisory Committee which includes representatives of the TUC, the CBI and trade and consumer organisations together with leading academic experts and Government statisticians.
The Committee has explicitly recommended that the index should reflect price changes over the whole field of goods and services purchased by households. I accept the judgment of the Committee on this matter.