§ Mr. Leadbitterasked the Secretary of State for Employment what shortage of skills in the Northern Region has been notified to his Department; and what steps he has taken to deal with the problem.
§ Mr. Dudley SmithThe principal labour shortages in the region are of certain skilled construction workers and of suitable recruits for the clothing industry. In some areas the rapid expansion of the economy is also beginning to cause problems of recruitment and deployment in other sectors also. The increase in Government training and the improvements we are making to our employment services should help employers to overcome these difficulties.