HC Deb 27 January 2003 vol 398 cc659-60W
Lynne Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his estimate is of the change as a percentage of gross domestic product in spending on pensions necessary to bring the average pension in the United Kingdom in line with that in(a) the Netherlands, (b) the USA, (c) Australia, (d) Japan,(e) Italy, (f) Germany, (g) France, (h) Sweden and (i) the average in the EU. [90124]

Mr. McCartney

The information is not available in the format requested. Such information that is available is set out in the following table.

Comparable cross-country data on public and private pensions expenditure are available only for European Union countries. According to data produced by Eurostat, the highest rate of old-age pension expenditure per capita is in the UK.

Expenditure on old age pensions at 1995 constant prices (index of EU average 1990 = 100) per head (population over 65)
1999
France 111
Germany 102
Italy 113
Netherlands 108
Sweden
UK 134
EU-15 114

Notes:

1. Production of comparable cross-country estimates is extremely difficult due to substantially different rules in various countries. Eurostat say about their numbers:

"This indicator is not perfect. Old-age pensions may cover different areas in different countries, and the retirement age differs from country to country (for both the legal age and the effective age)."

However, Eurostat's: "European Social Statistics—Social Protection Expenditure and Receipts" (ESSPROS) is regarded as the best available measure.

2. The definition of pensions in the ESSPROS methodology includes basic and supplementary schemes, sometimes known as first-pillar and second pillar schemes, but excludes third-pillar arrangements, for example personal pensions in the UK. The ESSPROS pensions aggregate comprises of only part of periodic cash benefits under the disability, old-age, survivors and unemployment functions in ESSPROS.

3. In the case of the UK, the pensions aggregate recorded in ESSPROS comprises of benefits payable under the disability, old-age and survivors' functions and occupational pensions. It excludes lump-sum benefits payable on retirement (approximately 0.7 per cent. of GDP in 1999). Personal pensions are also not included in the ESSPROS social protection definition of pensions (approximately 1.5 per cent. of GDP in 1999).

4. Data are not available for Sweden.

Source:

Eurostat-ESSPROS, Statistics in Focus, June 2002, ISSN 1024–4352 www.europa.eu.int