§ Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity, in view of the Government's policy of increasing output and production, why the total number of unemployed rose to 2.4 per cent. in June; what action she has taken, or plans to take, to reduce this figure; and on how many occasions since 1945 has unemployment, excluding school-leavers, reached the current figure of 569,000 during the month of June.
§ Mr. Roy JenkinsI have been asked to reply.
The June figure was influenced by the transitional unemployment that is inevitable while the shift of resources from domestic consumption to export and import-saving production takes place; but I expect this production to build up in the coming year with beneficial effects on the level of employment. As to the last part of the Question, the June figure was then the highest recorded since the present series began in 1950. Comparable figures for earlier years are not available.