§ Mr. AltonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment by what amount would a couple with earnings of £70 a week, with two children, paying £30 a week rent and £10.54 in council tax, need to increase their earnings to secure an additional take-home pay of £4.42 per week.
§ Mr. BurtI have been asked to reply.
A couple with two children, paying £30 a week rent and with earnings of £70 per week, would be entitled to family credit of £61.18. In order to secure an additional take-home pay of £4.42 a week they would need to increase their earnings by £5.09 a week. This assumes that the question refers to a community charge of £10.54, which is the correct amount in the circumstances described, rather than council tax which does not take effect until April 1993.