§ 20. Mr. Hillasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on recent trends in employment.
§ Mr. TebbitEarly indications are that employment fell by about 70,000, seasonally adjusted, in the first quarter of 1983. This is less than half the fall in the previous quarter. Given the under-estimation of employee numbers, to which I referred in reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Hendon, North (Mr. Gorst) on 28 April—[Vol. 41 c.423–24]— the fall in employment was probably significantly less, and employment in service industries may have risen during the quarter. Later figures for manufacturing industry confirm that the downward trend in employment there has slowed down.