§ Mr. Hancockasked the Paymaster General what was the percentage of married women in work (a) full-time and (b) part-time in each year since 1970.
§ Mr. Alan ClarkThe information requested is available from the census of population and labour force surveys and is therefore restricted to the years shown in the following table:
Percentage of all married women in work Great Britain (a) Working full-time* (b) Working part-time* April 1971† 19.7 19.1 April 1981† 22.0 23.0 Spring 1983║ 21.1 23.5 Spring 1984║ 21.1 25.8 * Except where indicated, persons in employment are shown as working full-time or part-time according to whether they described their job as a full-time or part-time job. †Source: 1971 Census of Population. Persons in employment are classified as full-time if they usually worked more than 30 hours per week, excluding overtime and meal breaks, and as part-time if they usually worked not more than 30 hours per week. ‡Source: 1981 Census of Population. ║Source: Labour Force Surveys.
§ Mr. Wareingasked the Paymaster General if he will make a statement on the latest unemployment figures for Merseyside.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeAs we all know, the level of unemployment in Merseyside is much too high. That is why there is an extensive range of Government assistance to attract new investment and new jobs. The area will also benefit from the current expansion of our special employment and training measures. But the creation of jobs in Merseyside will depend primarily on the overall attractiveness of the area to potential investors and the competitiveness of local industry.