asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will publish in the Official Report a table showing for each year since 1954 the percentage increase in real wages before and after tax for (a) manual workers and (b) the labour force generally, together with the nearest equivalent figures, in each case, showing the increase in employment and unemployment, respectively.

Pre-tax nominal wages for manual workers can be found in "British Labour Statistics" (Historical Abstract 1886–1968, and annual issues until 1976) and, for more recent data, in the Employment Gazette, table 5.4. Some figures for the whole economy are shown on page 110 of Economic Trends, Annual Supplement 1985. Wages and salaries, for all employees but not for manual workers, on a post-tax basis can be calculated using data for taxes and household income shown in the Blue Book, tables 9.6 and 4.4 respectively. Real wages can be derived using the retail prices index. Figures for total employment and unemployment are shown on page 99 of Economic Trends, Annual Supplement 1985. Figures for the numbers of employed and unemployed manual workers are not readily available, though up to 1982 unemployment figures were available disaggregated by previous occupation and were published in the Employment Gazette and "British Labour Statistics" Historical Abstract.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the annual increase in real wages and in employment assumed in the base run of his simulation of the effect on employment of a reduction in real wages; and if he will publish a table in the Official Report showing for each year the figures in the base run for employment, wages, prices, interest rates, the money supply, the public sector borrowing requirement, purchases of gilt-edged, exhange rates and imports and exports of manufactures.

The figures in the base run used in the simulations were derived from a recent Treasury forecast. It is not my practice to publish forecasts in the detail requested. The results of the simulations are not in any case very sensitive to the base run values used.