§ Mr. David Youngasked the Secretary of State for Employment how many disabled people are registered in the last year for which figures are available; how this compares with the estimated number of those entitled to register; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Jim Lester[pursuant to his reply, 23 July 1980, c. 772]: I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that in April 1980, the latest date for which figures are available there were 470,588 people registered as disabled in Great Britain. It is not possible to determine with any precision the number of disabled people who are entitled to register, although a very rough estimate is some 1–1 to 1–2 million.
The existing procedures for the registration of disabled people is an integral part of the quota scheme which is at present under review. We will be looking at all aspects of the scheme when the MSC submits its recommendations.