§ Mr. Derek TwiggTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects to announce the outcome of the review of the revisions to the average earnings index. [74433]
§ Ms HewittThe report of the external review of the revisions to the average earnings index, announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer on 23 October 1998, is being published today. The review has been conducted under the direction of Sir Andrew Turnbull and Mervyn King. Copies of the report are available in the Vote Office.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today separately published the report of the work on the average earnings index by Professor Ray Chambers of Southampton University, which was commissioned by Dr. Tim Holt, the Director of the ONS. Copies of this report have been deposited in the Library of the House.
At the same time, following the implementation of the immediate technical recommendations made in the Turnbull-King report, the average earnings index which was suspended on 2 November 1998 has been reinstated by the ONS. Details of the reinstated index are set out in Chapter 9 of the Turnbull-King report and also in a separate ONS First Release.
The Government have accepted the recommendations of the Turnbull-King report and are firmly committed to their implementation. Dr. Holt has already agreed to my request to draw up a programme of action designed to implement the remaining recommendations, including further work to ensure a process of continuous improvement to the index. I have asked Dr. Holt to report to me regularly on the progress that is being made in implementing the recommendations.