§ Mr. Raceasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what assumptions have been made within his Department about the number of one-parent families in Great Britain since 1978 in order to estimate benefit costs and for other purposes.
§ Mrs. ChalkerThe latest estimate normally used for official purposes is that there were about 825,000 one-patent families in Great Britain in mid-1978.
604WOther estimates of the number of one-parent families are made from time-to-time for various purposes and they are based on a variety of assumptions. Such estimates have no official status or permanence. An attempt to list and explain all the estimates made since 1978 could only be undertaken at disproportionate cost.