HC Deb 06 February 1987 vol 109 c838W
Mr. Gordon Brown

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what is his latest best estimate of the number of jobs created or sustained as a result of regional development grants or regional selective assistance in (a) 1960 to 1979 and (b) since 1979; and what is his estimate of the cost per job.

Mr. Giles Shaw

Estimates of the number of net jobs created or sustained as a result of regional development grants or regional selective assistance have not been made for the periods requested. However, it has been estimated that over the period 1960 to 1981, development controls, regional grants and subsidies, regional selective assistance and regional employment premium created some 600,000 additional manufacturing jobs in the main assisted areas, of which 450,000 jobs were estimated to be surviving in 1981.

The average Exchequer cost per job created by these policies between 1960 and 1981 has been estimated to be £40,000 in 1981 prices.

Mr. Gordon Brown

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will estimate how many jobs have been created or sustained by regional policy, regional development grants and regional selective assistance grants since November 1984; and at what cost per job.

Mr. Giles Shaw

It is too early for a proper economic evaluation to be made of the net effect on employment of regional incentives paid since November 1984. The following statistics on assistance paid or offered in Great Britain from December 1984 to December 1986 inclusive are available:

£ million Employment Cost per ment job (£000)
Payments of old RDGs 789.3 1 1
Payment of new RDGs 107.4 3 36,973 2.9
Offers of RSA2 457.4 4 139,336 3.3
1 Payments of old RDGs are not linked to employment.
2 Industrial and training grants only.
3 Jobs created.
4 Jobs estimated to be created or safeguarded.

Note: The employment and cost per job figures take no account of displacement or multiplier effects; the fact that some jobs would have been created without assistance; or the extent to which jobs created or safeguarded may subsequently have been lost.