HL Deb 25 July 1990 vol 521 c1601WA
Lord Alport

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they will state the present day value of the original Penny Black stamp issued in 1840 and how this compares with today's postal charges.

The Minister of State, Department of Trade and Industry (Lord Hesketh)

I understand that since 1840 the cost of posting a letter has gone down by some 75 per cent., taking into account wage changes. The basis for this figure is that in 1840 a manual worker's average weekly wage bought 264 Penny Black postage stamps: today a manual worker's average weekly pay is equivalent of one thousand first class stamps.

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