§ Mr. Leeasked the Secretary of State for Employment what percentage of current unemployment in the West Midlands county area is attributable to technological change, such as automation; and what percentage to failure on the part of entrepreneurs to invest.
§ Mr. GoldingThe current level of unemployment in the West Midlands is in large measure a reflection of the present world-wide economic recession. It is not possible, however, to isolate the effects of the recession from the underlying changes taking place in the structure of employment or to attribute a percentage of the current unemployment in the West Midlands county area separately to technological change or a failure to invest by entrepreneurs.