§ Mr. David Huntasked the Secretary of State for Industry how many surveys, questionnaires, censuses or similar investigations have been carried out, either wholly or partly, at public expense, on behalf of or by his Department or by any public bodies for which he is responsible in 1974, 1975 and in 1976 to date, respectively, specifying their nature and purpose and the total cost to public funds.
§ Mr. David Huntasked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection how many surveys, questionnaires, censuses or similar investigations have been carried out, either wholly or partly, at public expense, on behalf of or by his Department or by any public bodies for which he is responsible in 1974, 1975 and in 1976 to date, respectively, specifying their nature and purpose and the total cost to public funds.
§ Mr. David Huntasked the Secretary of State for Trade how many surveys, questionnaires, censuses or similar investigations have been carried out, either wholly or partly, at public expense, on behalf of or by his Department or by any public bodies for which he is responsible in 1974, 1975 and in 1976 to date, respectively, specifying their nature and purpose and the total cost to public funds.
§ Mr. Les HuckfieldI have been asked also to reply to the other two722W Questions as the three Departments share a common statistical service.
The statistical enuiries currently carried out by the Departments of Industry and Trade were listed in answer to the hon. Member for Christchurch and Lymington (Mr Adley) on 25th October 1976.—[Vol. 918, c. 9–10].— The only additional statistical enquiry carried out by the Department of Prices and Consumer Protection is a weekly or fortnightly survey of food prices.
The annual and more frequent surveys were the same in 1974 and 1975 except that in 1974 the building materials enquiry, quarterly and monthly, was not then carried out by the Business Statistics Office; the fuel stocks/consumption of large users inquiry, monthly or quarterly,, was not started until late in 1974; the exports prospects survey, quarterly, was not started until late in 1975; and the local employment acts inquiry, annual, was carried out for the last time in 1974. In addition, the following inquiries were carried out in 1975:
Subject Frequency Industries' purchases Every3–5years; Standby electricity generating plant one-off Census of overseas assets triennial Wholesaling and dealing (detailed enquiry) irregular The estimated total cost of carrying out these inquiries, including the cost of support services borne on the votes of other Departments, is £7.7 million in 1976–77; corresponding figures for 1974–75 and 1975–76 were £5.3 million and £6.5 million. These figures do not include the cost of statistical inquiries bourne on the votes of these Departments but carried out by other Departments. Corresponding information for inquiries carried out by public bodies for which these Departments are responsible could not be compiled without disproportionate cost.