Mr. Ted Fletcherasked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity what is the total cost of unemployment pay in the Northern Region, where unemployment is 4.5 per cent.; and what would be the cost of unemployment pay in the Region if unemployment were reduced to the national average of 2.4 per cent.
§ Mr. FernyhoughThe amount of unemployment benefit paid in the Northern Region in a particular week in March, 1968, when the percentage of unemployment was 4.5 was £283,553. If the percentage unemployment rate had been 2.4, a proportional calculation would indicate that the amount paid out would have been £151,228.