§ Mrs. Renée Shortasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what has been the output of the construction industry in maintenance and repair work in (a) the public sector and (b) the private sector for each of the last 12 quarters in volume terms; and what has been in each case the percentage change from one quarter to the next.
§ Mr. Geoffrey FinsbergStatistics collected from private contractors do not separate housing repair and maintenance between the two sectors. Following is the available information:
Construction Output in Non-Housing Repair and Maintenance*—Great Britain (a) for public sector (b) for private sector 1975 prices, seasonally adjusted 1975 prices, seasonally adjusted Quarter Current prices £ million £ million percentage change Current Prices £ million £ million percentage change 1977–4 715 601 +4 775 631 +4 1978–1 646 574 -4 733 617 -2 2 779 593 +3 903 695 +13 3 790 569 -4 952 680 -2 4 742 542 -5 910 648 -5 1979–1 657 499 -8 888 632 -2 2 813 516 +3 1,010 636 +1 3 924 535 +4 1,184 655 +3 4 877 506 -5 1,244 672 +3 1980–1 850 496 -2 1,268 679 +1 2 988 486 -2 1,436 681 † 3 1,026 460 -5 1,475 641 -6 * Output of private contractors and public authorities' direct labour. †less than 0.5 per cent.