asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if she can give an estimate of the annual loss to the National Insurance Fund of contributions unpaid as a result of 500,000, 750,000 and 1 million unemployed.

Excluding Treasury supplement, and on the earnings assumption used by the Government Actuary in estimating the income for 1975–76 in his report on the Social Security Benefits Bill the amounts in 1975–76 would be of the order of £200 million, £300 million and £400 million, respectively.