§ Sir Brandon Rhys Williamsasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many married couples are now separately assessed for income tax; and what estimate he has made of the value of the option in terms of additional net income to the average married couple choosing to exercise it.
§ Mr. Peter Rees[pursuant to his reply, 20 May 1980, c. 132]: About 120,000 339W married couples make an election for the separate taxation of wife's earnings under the provisions of section 23 of the Finance Act 1971. The estimated average benefit per couple is about £685. In addition, in about 10,000 cases, an option for separate assessment is exercised under section 38 of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1970, but in these cases there is no financial benefit from the option.