§ Mr. Ralph Howellasked the Secretary of State for Social Services, further to his reply to the right hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent, South (Mr. Ashley), Official Report, 7 March, c. 361, if he will now show the numbers of unemployed males in each family category as percentages of all males in the same family category.
GREAT BRITAIN (thousands) (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) Type of family Number of unemployed males receiving benefit Number of families headed by a male (aged 16–64) Column (2) as a percentage of column (3) Number of unemployed males receiving benefit Column (5) as a percentage of column (3) All periods Over 1 year Singal … … (402) 4,820 88 1.8 Married couples No children … … (110) 4,960 36 0.7 All with children … … 224 6,410 3.5 71 1.1 1 child … … 69 2,420 2.9 20 0.8 2 children … … 73 2,710 2.7 20 0.7 3 children … … 44 930 4.7 15 1.6 4 or more children … … 37 350 10.6 17 4.9 Sources: 5 per cent. sample of claimants for unemployment benefit or credits on 9 November 1978; 2 per cent. sample of supplementary benefit recipients on 29 November 1978; 4 per cent. sample of child benefit recipients at 31 December 1978 and OPCS population figures. Notes: (i) Column (2) figures in brackets—Married recipients of unemployment benefit without supplementary allowance are shown in the table as single, unless they were receiving benefit for a dependant. Thus single males and married couples without children arc not expressed in column (4) as a percentage of families headed by a male. A percentage figure is given, however, for the single males and married couples without children shown in column (5) since the number still receiving unemployment benefit after 1 year is very small. (ii) Column (3)—A deduction, estimated from the family finances survey October 1978–79, has been made in respect of one parent families headed by a female, for those categories listed as married with children.