HC Deb 15 February 1982 vol 18 c25W
Mr. Wigley

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will ensure that none of the changes being undertaken in the administration of his Department will result in the ending of the availability of information on a regular and frequent basis concerning the occupational analysis of unemployed persons.

Mr. Waddington

A full description of the proposed changes to the present method of compiling the unemployment figures, following the Government's acceptance of recommendations in the report on the "Payments of Benefits to Unemployed People" that registration for employment should be voluntary, was published in the April 1981 issue of the EmploymentGazette—pages 201–31—a copy of which is available in the House of Commons Library.

The count will be transferred from employment offices to unemployment benefit offices; the article explained why initially analyses by occupation will not be available through benefit offices under the new proposals. However, it is intended to prepare analyses of the unemployed by occupation of those people who continue to register with the employment services. This area will be looked at again as and when resources become available in benefit offices and once the quality of the data relating to those who register voluntarily can be appraised.

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