12. Mr. Fred Evansasked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity how many young persons were unemployed in Caerphilly at the latest available date.
§ Mr. FernyhoughOn 9th June, 1969, 72 young persons were registered as unemployed at careers offices in the Caerphilly area.
Mr. EvansWill my hon. Friend appreciate that in areas of high unemployment such as this and many others like it, juvenile unemployment must be a cause for grave concern? Can he tell me what the situation is, taken at the nearest convenient date, as compared with a year ago? If there has been an improvement, does he estimate that the trend is likely to continue, and what is his prognosis for juvenile unemployment during the coming winter?
§ Mr. FernyhoughAs I said in my original Answer, there were 72 young persons unemployed at the last count, and in the corresponding count last year, there were 135, which shows a substantial improvement. I know my hon. Friend's deep concern about the matter, but I think that he will be happy to know that all known Easter school leavers have found employment, and we feel that the prospects for those leaving at the end of term this July and August are reasonably good.