HC Deb 30 January 2001 vol 362 cc139-40W
Mr. Webb

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many(a) male and (b) female pensioners living in households with income below half the national average there were, broken down by five year age group, in the latest year for which figures are available. [147807]

Mr. Rooker

Such information as is available is in the table.

The proportion of male and female pensioners living in households below 50 per cent mean income broken down by five year age bands
Pensioner sex and age Income before housing costs Income after housing costs
Male pensioners
Number of male pensioners below 50 per cent, mean 0.9 million 1.0 million
Of which:
Aged 65 to 70 29% 30%
Aged 71 to 75 30% 30%
Aged over 75 42% 41%
Female pensioners
Number of female pensioners below 50 per cent. mean 1.5 million 1.9 million
Of which:
Aged 60 to 65 9% 9%
Aged 66 to 70 20% 20%
Aged 71 to 75 27% 27%
Aged 76 to 80 23% 24%
Aged over 80 21% 21%

Notes:

1. All figures are estimates and are taken from the Households Below Average Income (HBA) data set which is derived from the Family Resources Survey (FRS). The FRS does not include Northern Ireland, and 1998–99 is the latest year for which data are available.

2. Due to small sample sizes, reliable estimates of male pensioners aged 75 and over and female pensioners aged 80 and over, broken down by five year age bands do not exist.

3. The estimates are sample counts, which have been adjusted for non-response using multipurpose grossing factors that control for region, council tax band and a number of other demographic variables. However, they do not control for the population by five year age bands. Estimates are subject to both sampling error and to variability in non-response. All proportions are rounded to the nearest per cent. and numbers to the nearest 100,000.

4. The income measure used is weekly net (disposable) equivalised household income (that is to say income that is adjusted to reflect the composition of the household). The figures may be sensitive to the choice of equivalisation scale used.

5. The estimates are presented on both a Before Housing Costs (BHC) and an After Housing Costs (AHC) basis in line with HBAI conventions.

Source:

Family Resources Survey 1998–99.