§ 29. Mr. OppenheimTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will make a statement on employment in local government.
§ Mr. KeyThe total number employed in local government in England has fallen by 4 per cent. since 1979.
That there has been an overall reduction is in large part due to Government action in abolishing the metropolitan counties and GLC, removing bus and airport companies from local authority control, and later removing polytechnics from local government.
The Government's policies both in encouraging councils to make use of the private sector through competitive tendering and in encouraging greater efficiency in the delivery of services should exert a strong downward pressure on staff numbers.