§ Mr. Kilroy-Silkasked the Secretary of State for Industry, what steps he is taking to stimulate the employment prospects on Merseyside in (a) the short-term and (b) the long-term.
§ Mr. Eric S. HefferThe Government have already taken steps to encourage development and employment in Merseyside and other areas of high unemployment. The granting of special development area status to Merseyside, the doubling of the regional employment premium and the strengthening of IDC control should help to improve the situation. Twelve advance factories have also been allocated 341W to Merseyside in the past year, the last in a new programme of factories announced on 14th February. Looking further ahead, Merseyside is to receive nearly 3,500 jobs as a result of Government dispersal plans. My Department is also taking over a 21-acre site at Gill-moss, Liverpool which we intend to redevelop with modern factories. More generally the proposed National Enterprise Board will be able to act to create employment by launching new ventures or undertaking joint commercial ventures with private companies. The new system of planning agreements will also be concerned, among other things, with the distribution and balance of investment and employment. The success of our regional policies, however, will be greater if the general economic outlook improves and this is one of the Government's top priorities.