§ Mr. Nottasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if she will explain the difference between the monthly estimates of numbers unemployed published by her Department and the estimated average number of receiving benefit at any one times as set out in the last line of the table on pages 100–1 of Command Paper No. 6393; and if she will describe, in quantitative terms, the adjustments and corrections which are made in relating the published monthly figures to those in the table referred to.
§ Mr. MeacherRoughly half those who are unemployed—the proportion varies with the level of unemployment—are entitled to national insurance unemployment benefit. This proportion reflects the facts that not all the unemployed satisfy the contribution conditions for receipt of unemployment benefit and that others exhaust their entitlement to it.