§ 8. Mr. GillTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what trends are identifiable in the total number of people employed in (a) the public service and (b) the wealth-creating part of the private sector.
Mr. JacksonIn mid-1989 there were 20.2 million people employed in the private sector, an increase of 3.6 million or 21 per cent. since 1983; and 6.1 million were employed in the public sector, a decrease of 0.9 million o r 13 per cent. since 1983.
§ Mr. GillDoes my hon. Friend agree that the welcome trends that he has just announced would rapidly evaporate if the Opposition came to office, because their policies inevitably mean greater burdens on private industry and greater bureaucracy in the public sector?
Mr. JacksonMy hon. Friend is right. The Opposition have not yet grasped the secret of business success.
§ Mr. MaddenIs the Minister aware that every week about 400 men and women lose their jobs in the textile and clothing industry? What are the Government doing to ensure that if there is any desperate effort to renegotiate GATT, the British textile and clothing industry will not be sold down the river and again seen as expendable by the Government? What will he do to safeguard employment in British industries to ensure that there are no job losses on that scale in the coming year?
Mr. JacksonThe hon. Gentleman illustrates what I said in my answer to the previous question: the Labour party does not understand what makes for growth in business. Protectionism does not create growth. We have to focus on the increase in employment that is taking place and the opportunities that are being presented. There are now 2 million more people at work in Britain than there were in 1979. That would not be assisted by protectionism.