§ Lord Diamondasked Her Majesty's Government:
In connection with the statements made by the Secretary of State for Employment on 23rd January 1986 (col. 332), what is their calculation of the average annual rate of return on quoted equities in the United Kingdom in each of the calendar years 1980 to 1984 inclusive, after taking account of those companies which were active at the start of that period but which through liquidation or for other reasons paid no dividends during any one or more of those years.
§ The Secretary of State for Employment (Lord Young of Graffham)Calculations made by Phillips and Drew on the basis of the Financial Times Actuaries All Share Index show that including dividends and capital appreciation the annual percentage rate of return on United Kingdom equities in the years 1980–84 was:
1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 35.4 13.7 29.2 29.1 31.9 FTA All Share Index is continually rebased to take account of changes in company status, including liquidation.