§ Mr. Ralph Howellasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) on the same basis as his reply to the hon. Member for Norfolk, North on 18 January, Official Report, c. 79, what are the latest figures available (a) for the annual total cost of the total public sector work force and (b) the average annual cost for each of the following: (i) a civil servant, (ii) a local government employee, (iii) a National Health Service employee and (iv) a public corporation employee;
(2) when he proposes to reply to the question tabled for answer on 14 July.
§ Mr. HayhoeI am sorry for the delay in replying to this question. Figures for the annual total cost of the total public sector work force comparable with the information given in the written answer on 18 January are not available. Information on the provision for pay and pension costs of central Government Departments, the Armed Forces, the National Health Service and other central Government bodies is given in table 5 of the memorandum by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, (Cmnd. 8512). The publication "National Income and Expenditure" shows expenditure on wages and salaries, including employers' contributions to national insurance, and so on, for central Government and local authorities in table 9.6, and for public corporations in table 6.1.
Information on the number of employees, full and part-time, in each sector is given in an article in Economic Trends, December 1981 edition.
Any broad averages of per capita remuneration costs derived from these sources must be interpreted with great caution. Cost and employment figures are subject to differences in definition and coverage and average costs are affected by the extent of part-time working.