HC Deb 03 December 1974 vol 882 cc399-400W
34. Mr. Noble

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether he is satisfied with the present methods of collecting statistics on unemployment.

Mr. John Fraser

Yes.

Mr. Norman Lamont

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what the present rate of unemployment among the labour force would be if his Department's statistics were calculated in the same way as the official statistics for unemployment in the USA and Germany; and if he is satisfied with the method of calculation in use for the United Kingdom.

Mr. John Fraser

The regular figures for unemployment in Germany are collected in a way similar to that used in this country, being counts of numbers of persons registered at employment offices.

The unemployment figures in the USA, however, are collected by means of sample household surveys and are based on different concepts—for example, the inclusion of persons who are temporarily sick whilst out of work, of persons who describe themselves as out of work but who do not register, and of the self-employed; and the exclusion of persons unemployed for less than a week and of persons who have not taken active steps to obtain a job.

The most recent household survey in this country which gives figures which are on a basis believed to correspond reasonably closely to that used in the USA is the General Household Survey (GHS) of 1972, though the results of this survey are still being appraised in relation to the results of other surveys. In 1972, when the official unemployment rate in Great Britain averaged 3.8 per cent., unpublished figures from the GHS gave an average of 4.2 per cent. The GHS figures are subject to sampling error.

The present method used in the United Kingdom has important advantages compared with household surveys: the results are available much more quickly; detailed analyses can be provided for small local areas as well as the country as a whole; and there are no sampling errors. I am, therefore, satisfied with present methods used in conjunction with the supplementary information provided by surveys.