Health Care and Social Security

HC Deb 17 March 1986 vol 94 cc63-4W

Mr. Gordon Brown

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will list the latest figures for the amount of social protection (health care and social security) expenditure as a percentage of the gross domestic product in the United Kingdom and other members of the European Economic Community, on the same basis as his reply of 19 November 1984 to the hon. Member for Bolsover (Mr. Skinner) Official Report, column 63.

Mr. Major

Using the definition of "social protection" described in the "European system of integrated social protection statistics: Methodology—Part I" (Eurostat, 1981), which includes employers' sick pay and private pension schemes, social protection expenditure as a percentage of gross domestic product in 1982 was as follows:

	Per cent.
Netherlands	33.3
Belgium	30.5
Denmark	30.3
Federal Republic of Germany	29.8

	Per cent.
Luxembourg	28.9
France	28.5
Irish Republic	23.9
United Kingdom	23.6
Greece	19.0

Information for other members of the European Community and for later years is not yet available.