HC Deb 14 July 2003 vol 409 cc130-1W
Mr. Breed

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average proportion of income paid out in council tax by a pensioner household in the South West of England is. [124620]

John Healey

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.

Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Colin Breed dated 14 July 2003 As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking for the average proportion of income paid out in council tax by a pensioner household in the South-West of England. (124620) Estimates for council taxes and income are based on the analysis "The effects of taxes and benefits on household income 2001–02" produced by the ONS and published on the National Statistics website on April 11 2003 and in Economic Trends in the May 2003 edition. The analysis can be obtained from the House of Commons Library. This includes measures of income inequality for the United Kingdom as a whole based on data from the Expenditure and Food Survey. Pensioner households have been defined as those where the Household Reference Person is retired. The Household Reference Person is defined as retired if aged 65 years or more and male, or 60 years or more and female, and economically inactive. The Household Reference Person is identified during the interview and is defined as the member of the household who:

  1. a. owns the household accommodation, or
  2. b. is legally responsible for the rent of the accommodation, or
  3. c. has the household accommodation as an emolument or perquisite, or
  4. d. has the household accommodation by virtue of some relationship to the owner who is not a member of the household.
If there are joint householders, the Household Reference Person will be the householder with the highest income. If the income is the same, then the eldest householder is taken. The estimated net council tax paid as a percentage of gross income for pensioner households in the South-West of England is 3.6 per cent. Net council tax is derived from gross council tax less benefits and discounts.

Andrew George

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what the average proportion of income paid out in council tax by a non-pensioner household in the South West of England was in 2002–03; [124674]

(2) what the average proportion of income paid out in council tax by a household in the top income decile in the South-West of England was in 2002–03. [124677]

John Healey

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.

Letter from Len Cook to Andrew George, dated 14 July 2003: As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent questions asking for the average proportion of income paid out in council tax by a household in the top income decile in the South-West of England in 2002–03 and the average proportion of income paid out in council tax by a non-pensioner households in the South-West of England in 2002–03. 24674, 124677). Estimates for council taxes and income are based on the analysis. The effects of taxes and benefits on household income 2001–02" produced by the ONS and published on the National Statistics website on April 11th 2003 and in Economic Trends in the May 2003 edition. The analysis can be obtained from the House of Commons Library. This includes measures of income inequality for the United Kingdom as a whole based on data from the Expenditure and Food Survey (EFS). Sample sizes for all households in tie South-West are only sufficient to allow a breakdown to be given by quintiles of income distribution and not by decile. The latest analysis from which estimates can be provided is for 2001–02 and results for 2002–03 will not be available until 2004. Non-pensioner households have been defined as those where the Household Reference Person is not retired. The Household Reference Person is defined as retired if 65 years or more and male, or 60 years of age or more and female, arid economically inactive. The Household Reference Person is identified during the interview and is defined as the member of the household who:

  1. a. owns household accommodation, or
  2. b. is legally responsible for the rent of the accommodation, or
  3. c. has the household accommodation as an emolument or perquisite, or
  4. d. has the household accommodation by virtue of some relationship to the owner who is not a member of the household.
If there are joint householders, the Household Reference Person will be the householder with the highest income. If the income is the same, then the eldest householder is taken. The following table shows: the estimated net council tax paid as a percentage of gross income for all households and non-pensioner households in the South-West, and the percentage paid for all households in the top income quintile (where households are ranked by equivalised disposable income). The tope income quintile in the South-West includes all households where the equivalised disposable household income is equal to or more than £26,317 per year. Net council tax is derived from gross council tax less benefits and discounts.

Council tax paid as a percentage of gross income for all household and non-pensioner1 households in the South-West, 2001–02 (South-West—Percentages)
Households Top quintile2 All households
Net council tax3 All1 1.5 2.5
Non-pensioner — 2.2
1 Household reference person is not retired.
2 Households with equivalised disposable household income of or above £26.317 per year.
3 Net council taxes after deducting benefits and discounts

Source:

Office for National Statistics, based on the analysis. The effects of taxes and benefits on households income. Published on the ONS website and in Economic Trends No 594 May 2203

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