§ Mr. Masonasked the Secretary of State for Industry how many jobs have been created in the Barnsley travel-to-work area since May 1979; and how many have received Industry Act financial assistance.
§ Mr. MacGregorThere is no reliable information later than that contained in the June 1978 census of employment concerning employment in local areas such as the Barnsley travel-to-work area and hence no reliable estimate of the number of jobs created.
Between May 1979 and September 1981 12 offers of assistance under section 7 of the Industry Act 1972 were made to firms within the Barnsley TTWA. These offers were associated with projects estimated to safeguard 2,669 jobs and to create 691 new jobs. Eleven offers of assistance under section 8 of the Industry Act 1972 have also been made, but there is no estimate of the number of jobs with which these are associated.
§ Mr. Masonasked the Secretary of State for Industry if he will list the names of firms that have closed down in the Barnsley travel-to-work area, and the number of jobs that have been lost as a result of these closures since May 1979.
§ Mr. MacGregorThere are no comprehensive statistics of closures. Twelve closures making 10 or more employees redundant were reported to the Manpower Services Commission as due to occur in the Barnsley travel-to-work area between May 1979 and October 1981. 814 employees were to be made redundant as a result of those closures. These figures include provisional information for September and October. The MSC record is not complete, since jobs are lost when closures occur other than through direct redundancy and since the record does not cover redundancies involving fewer than 10 employees.
The information is often provided in confidence, so that the identity of the firms cannot be disclosed.