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Widow's Pension

Volume 201: debated on Monday 16 December 1991

The text on this page has been created from Hansard archive content, it may contain typographical errors.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will state for each year since 1979 the value of widow's pension for a widow aged 50 when her husband died, as a percentage of the index of average earnings.

The information requested is given in the table.

Table
ABCD
DateAverage Weekly EarningsStandard Rate of Basic Widows PensionPercentage C to B
November 1979114·1023·3020·4
November 1980135·1027·1520·1
November 1981149·5029·6019·8
November 1982160·6032·8520·5
November 1983175·3034·0519·4
November 1984187·4035·8019·1
November 1985199·5038·3019·2
July 1986210·9038·7018·3
April 1987224·0039·5017·6
April 1988245·8041·15 (26·75)16·7(10·9)
April 1989269·5043·60 (28·34)16·2 (10·5)
April 1990295·6046·90 (30·49)15·9(10·3)
April 1991320·6052·00 (33·80)16·2(10·5)

Note:

Column A—Uprating Date.

Column B—Average weekly earnings are taken from the New Earnings Survey and are for full-time adult males in April of each year.

Column C—Standard rate of Widows Pension—age 50 (age 55 after April 1988) at husband's death. The figures in brackets show the rate paid to a widow age 50 at the time of her husband's death (after April 1988).