§ Mr. Hal Millerasked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the current level of unemployment in manufacturing industry in the West Midlands as compared with the five previous years; and what percentage this represents as compared with other regions in the country.
§ Mr. John FraserFollowing is the information available:
NUMBERS UNEMPLOYED IN THE WEST MIDLANDS REGION WHO LAST WORKED IN MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES January 1971 22,263 January 1972 40,698 January 1973 27,256 January 1974 18,175 February 1975* 26,100 January 1976 54,444 NUMBERS UNEMPLOYED WHO LAST WORKED IN MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES EXPRESSED AS PERCENTAGES OF THE TOTAL NUMBERS UNEMPLOYED (EXCLUDING ADULT STUDENTS): JANUARY 1976 South East 24.1 East Anglia 24.5 South West 21.0 West Midlands 42.0 East Midlands 32.4 Yorkshire and Humberside 31.4 North West 29.5 North 27.6 Wales 25.2 Scotland 26.1 * Because of industrial action at local offices of the Employment Service Agency, information for January 1975 is not available.