§ Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will give the actual or estimated costs to the latest and most convenient date since their inception and the costs in total of the establishment and running of the Equal Opportunities Commission, the Office of Fair Trading and the National Consumers Council; and what would be the actual or estimated savings to the Treasury on an annual basis if these were abolished.
§ Mr. Lawson, pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 11 June 1979], gave the following answer:
The estimated net costs from inception to 31 March 1979 are shown in the table below. The last column of the table, which shows the net provision in Estimates for 1979–80, gives an indication of the annual saving which might ultimately be achieved if the bodies and all their functions were abolished.
Estimated net cost from inception to 31 March 1979 Net provision in estimates for 1979–80 £ million £ million Equal Opportunities Commission. 4.0 2.6 Office of Fair Trading 3.2 1.6 National Consumer Council 1.9 0.8