§ Mr. CousinsTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the working age inactivity rate was by(a) region and (b) gender, in the last quarter of (i) 1992, (ii) 1997, (iii) 2001 and (iv) 2002; and how many people were inactive but looking for a job in each case. [107920]
§ Ruth Kelly[holding answer 9 April 2003]: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Jim Cousins, dated 6 May 2003:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question about economically inactive people of working age. (107920)
The attached tables give the information requested for the three month periods ending February 1998, February 2002 and February 2003. These estimates are from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) for which the winter quarter covers the months from 620W December to February. Regional estimates for the three month period ending February 1993 are not currently available on a consistent basis. These will be available from 12 November 2003.
Table 1: Working age1 economic inactivity rates2 by region and sex Percentage, not seasonally adjusted December to February Government Office Regions 1992–033 1997–98 2001–02 2002–03 All United Kingdom 21.5 22.1 21.9 21.7 North East — 26.5 26.3 27.4 North West — 25.2 24.1 23.2 Yorkshire & Humberside — 23.4 23.2 22.9 East Midlands — 20.4 20.4 20.9 West Midlands — 21.6 21.7 21.3 East of England — 18.6 17.6 18.6 London — 24.0 24.5 25.2 South East — 18.1 17.3 17.6 South West — 18.3 18.6 18.3 Wales — 27.1 27.5 25.0 Scotland — 22.7 22.5 21.1 Northern Ireland — 26.7 29.2 26.4 Men United Kingdom 14.2 16.0 16.5 16.4 North East — 20.2 22.3 22.9 North West — 19.7 19.6 18.1 Yorkshire & Humberside — 18.0 17.4 17.2 East Midlands — 14.4 15.5 15.8 West Midlands — 14.4 15.7 16.0 East of England — 12.2 11.7 13.2 London — 16.8 16.9 17.5 South East — 11.5 11.8 12.6 South West — 13.1 14.7 14.4 Wales — 22.9 22.2 21.3 Scotland — 18.0 18.5 17.2 Northern Ireland — 18.1 22.1 18.0 Women United Kingdom 29.4 28.5 27.7 27.3 North East — 33.2 30.4 32.2 North West — 31.1 28.8 28.5 Yorkshire & Humberside — 29.1 29.5 28.9 East Midlands — 27.0 25.8 26.4 West Midlands — 29.3 28.2 27.0 East of England — 25.6 23.9 24.3 London — 31.0 32.1 32.9 South East — 25.1 23.2 23.1 South West — 23.9 22.8 22.5 Wales — 31.5 33.0 28.8 Scotland — 27.6 26.6 25.2 Northern Ireland — 35.8 36.6 35.2 1 Men aged 16–64 and women aged 16–59. 2 Economically inactive as a percentage of the working age population. 3 Regional data not available. Source:
ONS Labour Force Survey
621W
Table 2: Economically inactive people of working age1 who are seeking work2 by region and sex Thousand, not seasonally adjusted December to February Government Office Regions 1997–98 2001–02 2002–03 All United Kingdom 186 181 175 North East 3— 3— 3— North West 23 21 19 Yorkshire & Humberside 18 15 14 East Midlands 15 10 3— West Midlands 18 11 13 East of England 15 16 17 London 27 28 32 South East 23 27 21 South West 13 14 14 Wales 3— 12 10 Scotland 13 15 16 Northern Ireland n/a n/a n/a
Table 2: Economically inactive people of working age1 who are seeking work2 by region and sex Thousand, not seasonally adjusted December to February Government Office Regions 1997–98 2001–02 2002–03 Men United Kingdom 81 86 81 North East 3— 3— 3— North West 12 13 3— Yorkshire & Humberside 3— 3— 3— East Midlands 3— 3— 3— West Midlands 3— 3— 3— East of England 3— 3— 3— London 12 11 19 South East 3— 10 3— South West 3— 3— 3— Wales 3— 3— 3— Scotland 3— 10 10 Northern Ireland n/a n/a n/a Women United Kingdom 105 94 94 North East 3— 3— 3— North West 11 3— 14 Yorkshire & Humberside 10 3— 3— East Midlands 10 3— 3— West Midlands 10 3— 3— East of England 11 3— 10 London 15 17 13 South East 14 16 13 South West 3— 3— 3— Wales 3— 3— 3— Scotland 3— 3— 3— Northern Ireland n/a n/a n/a 1 Men aged 16–64 and women aged 16–59 2 Economically inactive people seeking work in the last 4 weeks but not available to start work in the next 2 weeks 3 Sample size too small for reliable estimate n/a—Data not available Source:
ONS Labour Force Survey