HL Deb 20 March 1975 vol 358 cc878-9

3.8 p.m.

Lord ROCHESTER

My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.

The Question was as follows:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether in view of the present and prospective employment situation, they will publish monthly figures showing the estimated amount of short-time working in manufacturing industries on a more up-to-date basis than is permitted by the existing procedure.

Lord JACQUES

My Lords, as from today up-to-date provisional estimates of short-time working will be made available with the monthly unemployment figures. In addition, the official figures relating to a week 2½ months before publication in the Department's Gazette at the end of each month will be made available some what earlier in the unemployment Press notice for the month.

Lord ROCHESTER

My Lords, while thanking the noble Lord for that reply— in which he has entirely satisfied me by acknowledging the need for at least a provisional estimate of short-time working to be made available on an up-to-date basis each month, as I understand will be done from now on—may I ask a further question of which I have given the noble Lord notice? Assuming a normal working week of 40 hours, what does the most recent estimate of the number of hours lost through short-time working and lay offs represent in terms of the equivalent number of wholly unemployed people?

Lord JACQUES

My Lords, may I thank the noble Lord for having given me notice of this question. The answer is in two parts. First, taking the official figures, they relate to mid-January; in mid-January there were 128,000 work people on short time. They lost the equivalent of 1,470,000 hours, and that was equivalent to 36,000 wholly unemployed. May I now turn to the provisional estimate, which refers to midMarch; that is to say, now. The provisional estimate of people who are working short time is 220,000. If the average hours lost per worker are the same as they were in January, then this would be equivalent to 63,000 wholly unemployed.

Lord ROCHESTER

My Lords, I am much obliged to the noble Lord.