Standard of Living
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the policy paper entitled Plan for Change, published on 5 December 2024, CP1210, how her Department plans to measure progress towards the target to raise living standards in every part of the UK; and if she will make it her policy to publish data on changes in real household disposable income per head in each local authority.
Answered by Alex Norris
A range of metrics are needed to understand progress towards raising living standards across the UK. The Department has worked with the Office for National Statistics (ONS) to increase the granularity of a variety of statistic publications such as Gross Value Added (GVA) and Gross Disposable Household Income (GDHI) at small area geographies including local authorities.
These data are also available through ONS’s Explore Local Statistics (ELS) service. This means that anyone can find, compare and visualise statistics about places in the UK using over 70 indicators.
The Department is continuing to work with ONS to identify possible future metrics to monitor the progress of raising living standards across the UK.
Verbatim has judged this answer against the question that was actually asked — answered, partly answered, or evaded. Sign in to see the verdict →