§ 13. Mr. Edwin Wainwrightasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many new jobs have been created in the area known as the South Yorkshire intermediate district since the 18th June 1970; and how these figures compare with the number of jobs declared redundant over the same period.
§ Mr. Anthony GrantIt is not possible to make a meaningful comparison. Applicants for IDCs estimated that 8,700 new jobs would be created when their projects were complete and fully manned. But this figure excludes the services sector, which in 1971 provided 38 per cent. of total employment. The number of redundancies recorded by the Department of Employment for the Yorkshire coalfield intermediate area, excluding Worksop employment exchange area, from 1st July 1970 to 31st December 1972 was 8,900, including the services sector.
§ Mr. WainwrightDoes the hon. Gentleman realise that people who are unemployed in large parts of the South Yorkshire area are getting bored to death with the inactivity of the Government in supplying them with jobs? When will the Department find a tenant for the advance factory at Mexborough? Cannot we have something done about the infrastructure in that area, making it attractive and thus getting more jobs and reducing the unemployment, which is twice the national average?
§ Mr. GrantThe question of infrastructure is for the Department of the Environment. I cannot now deal with the detailed case mentioned by the hon. Gentleman but I am sure that the people in that area are aware that redundancies were down by one-third last year while unemployment has fallen by 1.3 per cent. The trend is in the right direction.