asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer by how much real personal disposable income has increased or decreased in Great Britain, France, West Germany, the United States of America and Japan in each year since 1970, using indices and taking 1970 as the base year.

Following is the information:

The output of manufacturing industries is best measured in terms of their contribution to the gross domestic product; an aggregate of total production would contain an element of duplication to the extent that inter-industry transactions are not eliminated. An assessment of the contribution of manufacturing industries to gross domestic product in each of the countries listed is shown in the individual country tables in the United Nations publication "Yearbook of National Accounts Statistics". Satisfactory international comparisons, however, cannot be readily drawn from these data, mainly because they are published in national currencies and conversions to a common currency using international exchange rates is not wholly appropriate. Furthermore, although the estimates are compiled bearing in mind the requirements of international comparability, the United Nations draw particular attention to the need to pay regard to differences in concept, scope, coverage and classification which are described in notes to individual country tables. Such