Pensioners' Incomes

HC Deb 08 February 2000 vol 344 cc128-9W

Mr. Webb

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will update his estimates based on the Family Resources Survey 1997–98 of(a) median pensioner incomes, excluding means-tested benefits, by age, sex and marital status, consistent with his answer of 18 January 1999, Official Report, column 372W, on pensions, and (b) the size of each group. [108493]

Mr. Rooker

The information is in the tables.

Pensioner units median gross income excluding means-tested benefits, by age 1997–98
£ per week
	Age
	60–64	65–69	70–74	75–79	80+
Single male pensioners	n/a	125	107	104	106
Single female pensioner	130	106	101	88	90
Pensioner couples	n/a	254	202	197	187

Notes:

1. All amounts are in £ per week at July 1997 prices. They are rounded to the nearest £1, although estimates are not necessarily accurate to this level.

2. Estimates are for pensioner units. A pensioner unit is defined as a single (non-cohabiting) person over State Pension Age (65 years or above for men and 60 years or above for women), or a couple

Number of pensioner units by age and marital status 1997–98
	Age
	60–64	65–69	70–74	75–79	80+
Single male pensioners	n/a	250,000	210,000	220,000	260,000
Single female pensioner	380,000	540,000	640,000	700,000	1,010,000
Pensioner couples	n/a	1,020,000	780,000	490,000	360,000

Notes:

1. Figures are for GB only and rounded to the nearest 10,000 pensioner units.

2. Estimates are for pensioner units. A pensioner unit is defined as a single (non-cohabiting) person over State Pension Age (65 years or above for men and 60 years or above for women), or a couple (married or cohabiting) where the man, defined as the head, is over State Pension Age. Estimates for pensioner couples are broken down by the age of the man.

3. Estimates marked "n/a" are not applicable. Single men and couples are only defined as pensioner units if the man is aged 65 years or above.

4. Estimates are not controlled to independent population estimates by the age bands used in this analysis and therefore may be affected by variation by age in survey response rates.

5. All estimates, and in particular those for single male pensioners, should be treated with caution since they are based on small sample sizes.

Source:

The Pensioners' Incomes Series dataset, based on the Family Resources Survey (FRS) 1997–98.

Mr. Webb

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will provide separate analyses for pensioners aged 80 years or above as part of the core analyses contained in the Pensioners Income Series. [108432]

Mr. Rooker

The age groupings used in the Pensioners' Incomes Series will be reviewed before the publication of the 1998–99 edition, as part of the publication's ongoing development.