HC Deb 20 March 1979 vol 964 cc572-3W
Mr. Ralph Howell

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the origin and breakdown of his estimate of £2.10 for work expenses, used in his replies to the hon. Member for Norfolk, North.

Mr. Orme

A figure of £2.10 a week for work expenses is included in the current tax/benefit model used by my Department to illustrate the interaction of taxes and benefits for specimen families. It was derived from the national travel survey carried out in 1972–73 and has been updated in April each year by the transport and vehicle component of the retail prices index. The figure of £2.10 represents the average expenditure on public transport for travel to and from work of those heads of families in full-time work who use such transport. Thus it is not an average for all workers with families because it does not include those who use other forms of transport or those who incur no travelling expenses at all.

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