§ Mr. DavidsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, pursuant to paragraph 1 of his letter of 20 January to Scottish hon. Members, what assessment he has made of the number of people in Scotland whose income will fall or remain constant in real terms during the coming year; and what proportion of these he classifies as being on a low wage.
§ Mr. StewartMy right hon. Friend has not made any assessment of the number of people in Scotland whose real income will fall or remain unchanged during the coming year. Accordingly, my right hon. Friend has not assessed the proportion on low wages, however defined.
I note, however, that the independent forecasters, whose projections on the economy are regularly monitored by the Scottish Office Industry Department, expect that Scottish GDP will rise, on average, by 1.3 per cent. in 1993 and 2.3 per cent. in 1994. I am confident that this will be reflected in an overall rise in real incomes for the people of Scotland.