To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the net income of a family with two dependant children aged 18 and 12, with a gross income of £15,000 a year; and what assessment he has made of the sources of that net income. [129181]

A single full-time earner family with two dependent children aged 12 and 18 in full-time education and gross earnings of £15,000 a year will have an annual household income of nearly £16,600. This comprises the following elements:

	£
Gross earnings	15,000
Income tax	2,050
NICs	1,140
Child benefit	1,390
Child tax credit	3,390
Total	16,590

As a result of direct tax and benefit measures introduced since 1997 a single earner household with gross earnings of £15,000 a year and two dependent children aged 12 and 18 in full-time education is now nearly £2,750 a year better off in real terms.