§ Mr. Parryasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the recent unemployment figures on Merseyside.
§ Mr. GoldingThe provisional unemployment figures for November show that 145W there were 88,341 persons registered as unemployed in the Merseyside special development area—a slight decrease on the previous month. The unemployment rate for the area remained unchanged at 11.7 per cent.
The area's high rate of unemployment continues to give cause for serious concern. As I explained in the reply which I gave my hon. Friend on 9th November, the Government are fully aware of the problems of Merseyside and are continuing to take action to help the area.