§ Mr. Speedasked the Secretary of State for Defence how many civilian apprentices are currently under training in his Department's establishments; and what percentage increase or decrease this represents compared with the same time in 1980.
§ Mr. PattieThe total number of civilian apprentices currently under training in the Ministry of Defence is 7,459. This is a 7.3 per cent. decrease in the November 1980 figure of 8,050. However, about 4.3 per cent.—350—of this drop is accounted for by the decision not to recruit apprentices at Portsmouth and Chatham dockyards in 1981 as a result of the Defence Review.