§ Mr. Ellis Smithasked the Minister of Labour what was the number of unemployed persons within the City of Stoke-on-Trent on the latest available date; what were the corresponding figures for 1960, 1961 and 1962; what factors have caused the increase; and if he will give the same information for the North Staffordshire area.
§ Mr. HareThere were 5,927 workers registered as unemployed in the City of Stoke-on-Trent at 11th February; comparative figures for February, 1960, 1961 and 1962 were 3,322, 1,977 and 2,257 respectively; nearly two-thirds of the increase in unemployment between February, 1962, and February, 1963, was in construction, mainly due to the severe weather; about one-fifth of the increase was in the clay industries mainly pottery—and there were smaller 175W increases in a wide number of other industries. Corresponding figures for the rest of North Staffordshire were 3,358, at 11th February, and 1,540, 1,044 and 1,105 respectively at the earlier dates; more than half of the increase over the past year was in construction; there was a fairly substantial increase in the clay industries and small increases in many other industries.