HC Deb 21 April 1980 vol 983 cc68-71W
Mr. Rowlands

asked the Secretary of State for Wales how many people are currently employed in the public sector, local and central Government, in Wales; and how much he hopes to reduce that number in the years 1980 to 1984.

Mr. Nicholas Edwards

Public sector employment in Wales as at December 1979 is estimated at approximately 413,000. If account is taken of the subsequent rundown of the British Steel Corporation's work force at Shotton, the total reduces to approximately 407,000. Within this total, central Government employment amounts to about 107,000, and local government employment to about 158,000.

I cannot make detailed assessments of future employment levels for this wide and variegated sector; the responsibility for planning manpower reductions rests with the managements of the authorities and organisations concerned.

Mr. Rowlands

asked the Secretary of State for Wales whether he will publish a table of the labour force in Wales under the following categories: self-employed, public services, business sector, namely, private sector plus public corporations, non-employed and registered unemployed for the years 1973 to 1979 and the estimates for 1980 to 1984.

Mr. Nicholas Edwards

The information is given in the attached table. It is not possible to give detailed estimates of employment in 1980–84, but the population of working age is expected to be: 1980—1,643,000; 1981—1,651,000; 1982 1,659,000; 1983—1,670,000; 1984—1,678,000.

CIVILIAN LABOUR FORCE (000s)
1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978* 1979*
Registered Unemployed 32 33 51 74 80 87 80
Self-Employed† 110 106 104 104 104 104 104
Business Sector 783 778 761 752 756 756 762
Education, Medical and Legal Services 136 138 150 158 158 158 160
Public Administration 81 76 87 85 84 84 84
Total Civilian Labour Force 1,142 1,131 1,153 1,173 1,182 1.189 1,190
H. M. Forces 6 6 6 7 6 6 6
Non-employed 436 454 438 426 426 431 439
Total population of working age 1,584 1,590 1,598 1,606 1,614 1.626 1.635
* Provisional
† Assumed unchanged since 1975

Mr. Ioan Evans

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement on future levels of unemployment in Wales.

Mr. Nicholas Edwards

It is not my

practice, nor that of successive Governments, to forecast unemployment.

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