HC Deb 05 March 1985 vol 74 cc767-8
9. Mr. Favell

asked the Secretary of State for Employment by how much productivity has increased in the non-manufacturing sector since 1979.

Mr. Tom King

Labour productivity in all sectors of the economy fell between the second quarter of 1979 and the end of 1980. Since then productivity has increased by 12.5 per cent. for the whole economy, by nearly 28 per cent. in manufacturing industries and by 7.5 per cent. in the non-manufacturing industries.

I will, with permission, circulate the full figures for 1979 to 1984 in the Official Report.

Mr. Favell

Would my right hon. Friend care to take this opportunity of congratulating the manufacturing sector on its achievement? Would he also like to take this opportunity to remind those engaged in the non-manufacturing sector, in particular the utilities, local government and public transport, of the importance of producing better services at less cost, not only for the profitability of the manufacturing sector, but for the well-being of the country as a whole?

Mr. King

My hon. Friend has spotted the stark contrast between those two figures. I endorse the importance in the non-manufacturing sector, including the utilities and the other bodies to which he referred—many in the service sector, which is of great importance to the economy of the country—of a continuing level of productivity improvement.

Mr. Skinner

Is the Minister aware that the non-manufacturing sector at No.10 Downing Street, when my right hon. Friend the Member for Cardiff, South and Penarth (Mr Callaghan) left office, was costing £1.2 million to run? In the last financial year it has increased under the present Prime Minister's stewardship to £2.8 million and is now well on the way to £3 million. During the course of that stewardship she has thrown about 3 million people on to the scrap heap. How much productivity has there been at No. 10, apart from looking after Madam Dross herself?

Mr. King

If No. 10 has played some small part in the halving of the overseas foreign debt which the Government inherited and in achieving the improvement that we have seen in investment and productivity, whatever the figures were—and I suspect that they were not exactly as the hon. Gentleman portrayed—I would have thought that that was undoubtedly an extremely good bargain for this country.

Following are the figures:

Index of output per person employed
Whole economy* Manufacturing* Industries Non-Manufacturing† Industries
1979
1st Quarter 100.3 ‡101.7 100.0
2nd Quarter 103.9 ‡106.6 102.9
3rd Quarter 102.2 ‡102.8 102.1
4th Quarter 102.6 +105.2 101.7
1980
1st Quarter 101.6 ‡103.2 101.0
2nd Quarter 100.1 ‡100.8 99.9
3rd Quarter 99.3 ‡ 98.6 99.6
4th Quarter 99.0 ‡ 97.4 99.5
1981
1st Quarter 99.9 ‡ 99.0 100.2
2nd Quarter 101.0 ‡101.7 100.6
3rd Quarter 102.7 ‡105.5 101.6
4th Quarter ‡103.5 ‡107.3 102.1
1982
1st Quarter ‡104.3 ‡108.1 102.8
2nd Quarter ‡105.6 ‡109.8 103.9
3rd Quarter ‡106.7 ‡110.7 105.3
4th Quarter ‡107.5 ‡111.1 106.1
1983
1st Quarter ‡108.9 ‡115.4 106.7
2nd Quarter ‡109.2 ‡115.9 106.9
3rd Quarter ‡110.9 ‡119.3 108.0
4th Quarter ‡111.2 ‡121.2 107.8
1984
1st Quarter ‡111.1 ‡121.7 107.6
2nd Quarter ‡110.6 ‡122.7 106.6
3rd Quarter ‡ 111.3 ‡124.5 107.0
* Source: Employment Gazette Table 1.8.
† Source: Central Statistical Office.
‡ Revised.