§ Mr. FlightTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what the savings ratio has been for each quarter since May 1992; [9751]
(2) what the savings ratio has been among families in the lowest income quintile in each year since May 1997. [9747]
§ Ruth KellyThe information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
Letter from John Kidgell to Mr. Howard Flight, dated 25 October 2001:
The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent questions on the savings ratio among families in the lowest income quintile in each year since May 1997, and the overall household savings ratio for each quarter since May 1992 (9747, 9751). I am replying in his absence.The only data available on household expenditure and income by gross income for the lowest income quintile group are those collected in the Family Expenditure Survey and published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) in "Family Spending". However, these data are not on a comparable basis to the National Accounts definition of expenditure and income.The information for overall household savings ratios for each quarter since 1992 is available as part of the output of the quarterly National Accounts and is published quarterly in the ONS' First Release, "Quarterly National Accounts". The series is held on the ONS database, using the four digit code NRJS. All sources are available in the House of Commons library.