HC Deb 05 March 1990 vol 168 c518W
5. Mr. Sedgemore

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people depend entirely on state benefits for their income.

Mrs. Gillian Shephard

Information on the number of people depending entirely on state benefits is not available. In 1987, the latest year for which an estimate is available, social security contributed either in whole or in part to the incomes or family incomes of around 38 million people.

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