§ 12. Mr. Winnickasked the Minister of Labour if he will make a statement on the employment position in the London Borough of Croydon arising from local firms transferring work to other places.
§ Mr. FernyhoughAlthough three firms have recently transferred work elsewhere, of the 300 workers redundant in consequence 11 only remain unemployed. The percentage rate of unemployment for the Greater London area which includes Croydon is 1.6. This rate is below that for the region as a whole and considerably lower than the national average.
§ Mr. WinnickI am grateful for that reply, but is my hon. Friend aware that there is still some concern locally about the number of firms which have either moved out or may do so in future? While we have plenty of offices, the same is not true of factories. Will he soon be replying to the letter from Croydon Council about the industrial future of the town?
§ Mr. FernyhoughMy hon. Friend can rest assured that, with its customary competence, my Department replies to every letter it receives. My hon. Friend says that factories are moving out. Our experience has shown that there is such a demand for industrial space in Croydon that premises vacated are usually swiftly taken by those who want to expand.
§ Mr. Frederic HarrisIs the hon. Gentleman aware that I am closely associated with a company situated in the constituency of the hon. Member for Croydon, South (Mr. Winnick) and that, whenever we unfortunately have vacancies, we find it extremely difficult to fill them? Is he further aware that there is no real unemployment problem in Croydon whatever?
§ Mr. FernyhoughI hope that that happy situation will continue to prevail.