HC Deb 27 July 1981 vol 9 cc308-10W
Miss Wright

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will provide a breakdown of those unemployed in (a) the West Midlands and (b) Birmingham by standard industrial classification.

Mr. Peter Morrison

The following table gives the numbers registered as unemployed in the West Midlands region and the Birmingham travel-to-work area analysed by orders of the standard industrial classification. The latest available information is for 14 May and relates to the industries in 'which the unemployed persons last worked.

Standard Industrial Classification, 1968 West Midlands Region Birmingham travel-to-work area
Agriculture, forestry and fishing 2,866 243
Mining and quarrying 2,395 163
Food, drink and tobacco 5,832 2,062
Coal and petroleum products 121 31
Chemicals and allied industries 2,125 854
Metal manufacture 15,029 3,226
Mechanical engineering 14,129 2,769
Instrument engineering 546 201
Electrical engineering 7,572 2,584
Shipbuilding and marine engineering 166 29
Vehicles 23,226 9,269
Metal goods not elsewhere specified 36,824 14,279
Textiles 3,436 363
Leather, leather goods and fur 676 81
Clothing and footwear 2,927 563
Bricks, pottery, glass, cement, etc. 7,740 487
Timber, furniture, etc. 2,516 483
Paper, printing and publishing 2,561 863
Other manufacturing industries 5,367 2,230
Construction 32,663 10,514
Gas, electricity and water 983 335
Transport and communication 8,328 2,405
Distributive trades 23,512 7,474
Insurance, banking, finance and business services 4,817 1,954
Professional and scientific services 7,839 2,991
Miscellaneous services 22,524 7,822
Public administration and defence 7,518 2,311
Not classified by industry (including school leavers) 49,874 17,365
Total 294,112 93,951

Miss Wright

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the total number of registered unemployed, divided into the categories of male, female and under 18 years of age, in (a) the West Midlands and (b) Birmingham; and what is the latest estimate of the non-registered unemployed in the same areas.

Mr. Peter Morrison

The following is the information for the registered unemployed in the West Midlands region and the Birmingham travel-to-work area at 9 April, the latest date for which an analysis by age is available. Estimates of the numbers of non-registered unemployed are not available below national level.

Registered unemployed at 9 April 1981
Total of whom, those aged under 18 years
Male Female Male Female
West Midlands region 207,604 79,693 9,301 7,257
Birmingham travel-to-work area 68,431 23,985 3,047 2,212

Mrs. Renée Short

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many persons in (a) Wolverhampton and (b) the West Midlands have been unemployed for (i) over 12 months and (ii) over two years.

Mr. Peter Morrison

The following is the information at 9 April, the latest date for which an analysis by duration of unemployment is available:

Unemployed for over 52 and up to 104 weeks Unemployed for over 104 weeks
Wolverhampton employment office area 2,122 1,284
West Midlands Region 34,887 22,813

Mrs. Renée Short

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many persons aged (a) 16 to 18 years, (b) 18 to 25 years, (c) 25 to 40 years and (d) 40 to 65 years are unemployed in (i) Wolverhampton and (ii) the West Midlands.

Mr. Peter Morrison

The following is the information for the age ranges nearest to those specified at 9 April, the latest date for which an analysis by age is available.

Aged Wolverhampton employment office area West Midlands Region
Under 18 years 1,092 16,558
18 to 24 years 4,733 83,949
25 to 44 years 5,221 104,897
45 to 64 years* 4,079 81,560
* includes females aged 65 and over.