§ Mr. SwireTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the total number of (1) employees with earnings above the national insurance contribution ceiling; [22241]
(2) earnings by employees in excess of the national insurance contributions ceiling. [22240]
§ Dawn Primarolo[holding answer 17 December 2001]: It is estimated that total earnings over the Upper Earnings Limit of £500 per week for Class 1 Employee Contributions in 1999–2000 were £48.3 billion; and that the average weekly number of employees earning over £500 per week during 1999–2000 was 3.8 million.
These estimates were provided by the Government Actuary's Department and are the latest available figures.