§ 10. Mr. Sean Hughesasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will provide figures indicating the contribution made by industry on Merseyside to the current level of British exports and gross domestic product, respectively, in actual and percentage terms.
§ Mr. Norman LamontThe total gross domestic product of Merseyside in 1981 is provisionally estimated by the Central Statistical Office at £4,902 million, or 2.4 per cent. of the United Kingdom total, excluding the continental shelf region. Figures for exports by Merseyside industry are not available.
§ Mr. HughesDoes the Minister accept that those figures represent a tragedy for Merseyside in general and for the borough of Knowsley in particular, which has one third of the manufacturing base of Merseyside, yet 27 per cent. unemployment? Will the Minister accept that the Regional Studies Association report was correct when it said that the scale of the necessary reconstruction on Merseyside is so great that it is beyond the scope of traditional regional policies and that central Government direction is required?
§ Mr. LamontI certainly do not agree with the latter point. I also do not agree that, considerable though the problems of Merseyside are, the figures illustrate the problems to which the hon. Gentleman referred. Huge amounts of Government aid have been poured into Merseyside and I agree with the hon. Gentleman that it has not proved effective. That is one reason why it is right to look again at regional policy and to try to find a more effective way of deploying that money.