Retirement Annuity Premiums

HC Deb 14 July 1988 vol 137 cc313-4W

Mr. Cousins

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will provide, for retirement annuity premiums superannuation contributions tax relief, a breakdown of benefits for income bands on the same basis as that given in the answer to the hon. Member for Hammersmith (Mr. Soley) of 14 June on mortgage interest relief,Official Report, columns 147–48, giving additionally the percentage

Tax units receiving retirement annuity relief by range of total income
Range of total income	Number of tax units1 with retirement annuity relief	Average value of relief	Total cost of relief	Percentage of total cost	Number of tax units1 paying tax	Percentage of tax units	Percentage of tax units receiving relief
	(thousands)	(£)	(£ million)	(per cent.)	(thousands)	(per cent.)	(per cent.)
1985–86
Up to £10,000	450	120	50	13	12,000	59	4
£10,000 to £15,000	260	180	50	12	4,500	22	6
£15,000 to £20,000	190	210	40	10	2,100	10	9
£20,000 to £30,000	110	530	60	14	1,100	6	9
Over £30,000	100	2,080	210	52	450	2	22
TOTAL	1,100	370	410	100	20,100	100	5
1987–88
Up to £10,000	360	110	40	9	10,500	51	3
£10,000 to £15,000	300	160	50	10	4,800	23	6
£15,000 to £20,000	200	210	40	9	2,600	13	8

Mr. Lilley

Information on the number of building society accounts is not available. The annual returns sent by building societies to the Building Societies Commission showed at the end of 1987 an aggregate of 42 million investing shareholders and 3.6 million creditors for deposits and loans. As people may hold more than one account, these figures do not represent the actual number of accounts.