Vol. 550 No. 4
103 Mr. Fleming asked the Taoiseach the basis of the information contained in the recent report from the Central Statistics Office which showed that County Laois has the lowest per capita income in the country; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8324/02]
The Central Statistics Office issued a report, "County Incomes and Regional GDP 1999", in January 2002. The release was in two parts. The first part related to household incomes in counties and regions while the second part dealt with gross value added, that is, the output of goods and services in each of the eight regional authority regions. In the first part Laois featured as the county with the lowest per capita household income in 1999.
Estimates were provided of (a) primary income, that is, wages and salaries, self-employed income, rent of dwellings and interest and dividends; (b) total income derived by adding social transfer payments to primary income; and (c) disposable income obtained by subtracting income taxes from total income. Laois was the county which in 1999 had the lowest total income and disposable income per head of population.
Household income is calculated in accordance with the national accounts definitions. It includes the value of own farm consumption and earned income in kind as well as the imputed rent of owner occupied dwellings, that is, the estimated rent that the owner-occupier would have to pay for the dwelling if it were rented. The social transfers include the imputed value of some non-cash transfers such as secondary and university education, free medical drugs, free fuel and transport for the elderly.
