§ Mr. Brothertonasked the Secretary of State for Industry how many firms used the signposting and counselling services of the Small Firms Service in 1978; and, of these, how many received a 1979 Small Firms Service calendar.
§ Mr. Les HuckfieldIn 1978, 86,977 inquiries were addressed to the small firms centres. Information about which of the inquirers have received a 1979 calendar is not available.
§ Mr. Brothertonasked the Secretary of State for Industry how many Freefone telephone calls the Small Firms Service received in 1978; and what was their cost.
§ Mr. Les HuckfieldThis information is not readily available and could be obtained only at a disproportionate cost.
§ Mr. Brothertonasked the Secretary of State for Industry (1) whether his Department plans to issue a Small Firms Service calendar for 1980;
(2) what comments he has received from members of the public, including small firms, on the 1979 Small Firms Service calendar;
(3) how many members of his Department were employed on the production and distribution of the 1979 Small Firms Service calendar:
(4) in which years his Department has distributed calendars similar to the 1979 Small Firms Service calendar;
(5) to whom the 1979 Small Firms Service calendars have been distributed;
(6) what is the purpose of the production by his Department of the 1979 Small Firms Service calendar;
368W(7) what was the cost to public funds of the production of the 1979 Small Firms Service calendar.
§ Mr. Les HuckfieldThe purpose of the 1979 Small Firms Service calendar is to promote the Small Firms Service. Production of 68,000 calendars for 1979 cost £7,700. The calendars have been distributed to firms which might have need to use the Small Firms Service and to organisations such as the clearing banks, chambers of commerce, trade associations and those providing professional services—for example, accountants—who may be in a position to recommend the service to small businesses seeking help with their problems.
The calendar was first produced for 1974 and subsequently for each successive year. It has been well received and it is proposed that a calendar for 1980 be produced.
Production and distribution of the calendar is a small part of the management and promotion of the Small Firms Service and the staff cost of this work is not separately quantified.
§ Mr. Brothertonasked the Secretary of State for Industry how many 1979 Small Firms Service calendars were printed; arid how many of them have been distributed to date in 1979.
§ Mr. Les Huckfield68,000 Small Firms Service calendars were printed; some 65,000 have been distributed. Of the balance, some are retained for promotional work in the first quarter of the year.