Work and Pensions written question – answered at on 3 September 2012.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of pensioners had a net annual income of (a) up to £5,200, (b) £5,200 to £10,400, (c) £10,400 to £20,800, (d) £20,800 to £40,000, (e) £40,000 to £80,000 and (f) over £80,000 in (i) Scotland and (ii) the UK in the latest year for which figures are available.
Estimates on pensioner incomes are published annually in the Pensioners' Incomes Series available at:
http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/index.php?page=pensioners_income_arc#PI_Latest
The latest year of data which are available are for 2010-11. For the table, three years of data (2008-09, 2009-10, 2010-11) have been combined, as single-year estimates for Scotland are subject to volatility.
Table 1 shows the proportion of pensioners in each income band for Scotland and the UK, both before and after housing costs.
Table 1: Proportion (percentage) of pensioners in each income band in Scotland and the UK, before and after housing costs | ||||
Before housing costs | After housing costs | |||
Income band | Scotland | United Kingdom | Scotland | United Kingdom |
(a) up to £5,200 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 6 |
(b) £5,200 to £10,400 | 22 | 20 | 29 | 27 |
(c) £10,400 to £20,800 | 51 | 48 | 44 | 41 |
(d) £20,800 to £40,000 | 21 | 22 | 19 | 20 |
(e) £40,000 to £80,000 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 4 |
(f) over £80,000 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
Notes: 1. These statistics are based on Pensioners' Incomes (PI) Series data sourced from the 2010-11 Family Resources Survey (FRS). 2. The Pensioners' Incomes Series analysis is for pensioner units, which are defined as either single pensioners (people over state pension age) or pensioner couples (married or cohabiting pensioners where one or more are over state pension age). 3. Prior to 6 April 2010, women reached the state pension age at 60. From 6 April 2010, the qualifying age for women has been gradually increasing. The changes do not affect the state pension age for men, currently 65. 4. Net disposable incomes have been used to answer the question. This includes earnings from employment and self-employment, state support, income from occupational and private pensions, investment income and other sources. Income tax payments, national insurance contributions, council tax/domestic rates and some other payments are deducted from incomes. 5. Figures have been presented on a before housing costs and an after housing costs basis. For before housing costs, housing costs are not deducted from income, while for after housing costs they are. 6. All estimates are based on survey data and are therefore subject to a degree of uncertainty. Small differences should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response. 7. The reference period for PI figures is the financial year. 8. Proportions of pensioners have been rounded to the nearest percentage point. 9. Figures may not sum due to rounding. 10. Three survey years (2008-09, 2009-10, 2010-11) have been combined because single year estimates are not considered to be sufficiently reliable. Single year estimates are possible for the United Kingdom; however three-year averages have been supplied so the estimates for Scotland and the United Kingdom are comparable. 11. The preferred income measure for pensioners is after housing costs. Around three quarters of pensioners own their own homes and so have to pay out minimal housing costs from their disposable income compared to the current working age population who typically have to cover mortgage or rental housing costs. Considering pensioners’ incomes compared to others after deducting housing costs allows for more meaningful comparisons of income between working age people and pensioners, and between pensioners overtime. |
Yes1 person thinks so
No1 person thinks not
Would you like to ask a question like this yourself? Use our Freedom of Information site.