§ Mr. Allen McKayasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the amount paid for each year from 1970 in tax relief on house mortgages and the amount paid in subsidies for public sector housing over the same period; what was the average payment to each person receiving tax relief; and the average payment per each local authority tenancy during each of the same periods.
§ Mr. Geoffrey Finsberg,pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 2 July 1979; Vol. 969, c. 459], gave the following answer:
The nearest available figures for Great Britain, at outturn prices for each financial year since 1970, are as follows:
security benefits implies a decline of about 9½ per cent. in the purchasing power of the pound, as measured by the retail prices index, in the six months between mid May and mid November.