§ Mr. George Cunninghamasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his estimate of the number of staff 77W employed by the social service departments which local authorities are required by statute to maintain; and what is his estimate of the total salaries bill of these departments.
§ Dr. OwenI have been asked to reply.
Returns supplied by local authorities in England show that as at 30th September 1972—the latest date for which figures are available—the number of staff employed in their social services departments was 134,525. The salary bill for these departments in the 1972–73 financial year was a little over £200 million.