Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

The aims of the survey were: 1. To carry out a systematic and comprehensive comparison of Family Expenditure (FES) and Family Resources Survey (FRS) micro-data as inputs into a tax-benefit microsimulation model. 2. To draw general lessons from this exercise about the relative merits of the two datasets for descriptive purposes, and to establish the extent to which they can be considered as representative of the same population. 3. To develop methods for the enhancement of FRS data with expenditure data from the FES, using statistical matching and other imputation techniques. The intention is to experiment and explore a range of techniques and assumptions with the aim of establishing the method that is best suited to the particular purpose: the calculation of the revenue and distributional effects of complex reforms to the tax benefit system. 4. To draw general lessons from this exercise about the prospects and limitations of inter-dataset enhancements. 5. To communicate the assumptions and conclusions of the study in a manner that is transparent and of widespread use. One part of this process will be to provide copies of the synthetic database to interested users, accompanied by detailed documentation (subject to permission from the data providers).

Main Topics:

The main topics covered include housing expenditure and household services, motoring, food, leisure, adults' clothing and footwear, household goods and personal, items with no VAT, food with no VAT, books and newspapers, domestic fuel and power, travel and drugs and charitable gifts, children's clothes, insurance (not life), beer and lager, cider, fortified wine, unfortified wine, champagne and sparkling wine, spirits and liqueurs, cigarettes, cigars, pipe tobacco, petrol, diesel oil, pools, betting (not National Lottery), National Lottery.

No information recorded

Taken from existing sources - Family Expenditure Survey, 1995/96 and Family Resources Survey, 1995/96.