§ Mr. Kirkwoodasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what have been the reductions in the social security budget since 1979 caused by the changes in the bases of calculation of various benefits.
§ Mr. MajorThere have been a substantial number of changes to the benefit structure since 1979, some increasing and some decreasing expenditure. Because there was never a rigid set of rules for the uprating of benefits, it is not possible to say what expenditure would now have been, had these changes not been made, nor is it possible to assess the effect of individual changes in isolation.