HC Deb 29 July 1971 vol 822 cc141-2W
30. Mr. Skinner

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what are the latest official figures for unemployment nationally, and by regions.

Mr. Dudley Smith

At 12th July the provisional number of people registered as unemployed in Great Britain was 785,847. This was 3.4 per cent. The rest of the information is given in the following table:—

TOTAL NUMBERS REGISTERED AS UNEMPLOYED AND PERCENTAGE RATES OF UNEMPLOYMENT AT 12TH JULY,1971 (PROVISIONAL)
Registered unemployed Percentage rate
South East 145,682 1.9
East Anglia 18,847 2.9
South Western 41,934 3.1
West Midlands 87,635 3.8
East Midlands 42,831 3.0
Yorkshire and Humberside 79,670 3.9
North Western 116,777 4.0
Northern 73,897 5.6
Wales 44,062 4.6
Scotland 134,512 6.2
Great Britain 785,847 3.4

Note: The Great Britain total includes 42,727 persons who were temporarily stopped from work and 24,420 adult students registered for vacation employment.

31. Mr. Spriggs

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will arrange to supply detailed figures of unemployed men, women, boys and girls, by employment exchange areas, in the monthly or quarterly issue of the Employment and Productivity Gazette.

Mr. Dudley Smith

The numbers of unemployed men, women, boys and girls in each of 177 of the larger travel-to-work areas are published every month in the Department of Employment Gazette. Corresponding figures for each of the 1,000 or so employment exchange areas are available from my Department on request. My right hon. Friend does not propose to publish these detailed figures in the Gazette because of the expense involved.

39. Mr. Clinton Davis

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the present number of unemployed in the United Kingdom.

Mr. Dudley Smith

At the latest count on 12th July the provisional total number of persons registered as unemployed in the United Kingdom was 829,181, including 785,847 persons in Great Britain. The Great Britain unemployment rate was 3.4 per cent. of all employees.