§ Mr. CousinsTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what examinations have been made to check that that first issue premium bonds have been winning in ways consistent with the laws of probability; and what has been the result of such examination.
§ Mr. NelsonEach month the bond numbers generated by ERNIE, and the results of the prize draw, are subjected to a series of statistical tests by the Government Actuary, who is wholly independent of national savings. These tests have never given any reason to doubt ERNIE's randomness, or that each eligible bond number has an equal chance of being drawn for a prize, regardless of when it was issued.
Older bond numbers, including those of the earliest issue, do not appear as often as newer numbers in the prize lists simply because there are relatively fewer of them as over the years many of these bonds have been cashed in.
§ Mr. DenhamTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list(a) the number of valid premium bonds held by members of the public and (b) the total number of prizes available for premium bonds in each of the years since the establishment of the premium bond scheme.
§ Mr. NelsonThe number of eligible bonds and prizes issued in each year since the start of the premium bond scheme are shown below.
12W
Number of Eligible Bond Units as at 1 December (millions) Number of Prize issued in year (thousands) 1957 70.0 62.5 1958 152 9 149.0 1959 214.7 210.2 1960 272.2 257.1 1961 319 6 372.9 1962 359.6 424.3 1963 403.0 476.2 1964 453.4 532.7 1965 500 1 595.3 1966 551 6 657.8 1967 598.3 710.3
Number of Eligible Bond Units as at 1 December (millions) Number of Prizes issued in year (thousands) 1968 646.7 769.6 1969 721.7 863.9 1970 765.7 932.1 1971 845.1 971.9 1972 924.0 1,033 6 1973 987.4 1,117.4 1974 1,016.7 1,158.5 1975 1,070.7 1,203.5 1976 1,145.0 1,276.9 1977 1,210.6 1,309.7 1978 1,294.4 1,405.3 1979 1,374.4 11,125.8 1980 1,404.6 2890.5 1981 1,455.7 1,142.2 1982 1,497.7 1,221.2 1983 1.595 8 1,229.4 1984 1,683.6 1,337.7 1985 1,756.0 1,884.3 1986 1,839.1 1,962.2 1987 1,935.8 2,059.4 1988 2,133.9 2,232.5 1989 2,269.2 2,418.7 1990 2,271.5 2,483.5 1991 2,313.2 2,491.1 1992 2,454.0 2,599.1 1993 32,714.0 41,847.2 1 A temporary truncated prize structure was introduced for the September to December 1979 prize draws, to allow speedier recovery from industrial action. 2 A new prize structure was introduced from 1 January 1980 when the minimum prize was increased from £25 to £50. 3 As at 1 October. 4 Up to 1 October.