§ Mrs. Renée Shortasked the Secretary of State for Employment (1) how many people are currently employed in the production side of the office machinery industry; and how this compares with the figures for each of the past five years;
(2) how many people are currently employed in the marketing and after-sales support of the office machinery industry; and how this compares with the figures for each of the past five years.
§ Mr. Jim LesterThe following table gives the numbers of employees in employment in Great Britain in office machinery (minimum list heading 338 of the standard industrial classification 1968) for December of each year from 1974 to 1979. The statistics do not distinguish between those engaged on production and those concerned with marketing and after-sales support.
December 1974 28,200 December 1975 24,300 December 1976 24,100 December 1977* 23,300 December 1978* 23,200 December 1979* 22,600 *Provisional