§ Mr. Austin Mitchellasked the Secretary of State for Industry whether he will publish in the Official Report a table showing the number of plants by size of employment at the latest date and the numbers employed compared with 1976 and 1979.
§ Mr. ButcherThe information available relates to local manufacturing units, which are broadly equivalent to individual plants or factories. The latest published figures relate to 1979 and are given in table 1 ofBusiness Monitor PA1003 (1979) "Analyses of United Kingdom manufacturing (local) units by employment size". Figures for 1976 are given in the 1976 edition of this Business Monitor. A copy of each monitor is in the Library. Preliminary estimates derived from a recent analysis of the register of manufacturing units held al: the Business Statistics Office are as follows. The figures are subject to revision before the next publication of Business Monitor PA1003.
Manufacturing (local) units by employment size Preliminary estimates derived from the Business Statistics Office production register in March 1983 Employment size group Number of units Employment Thousands Thousands 20 to 49 16.1 500 50 to 99 7.4 520 100 to 499 8.3 1,750 500 and over 1.8 2,230 Total for units with 20 or more employees 33.7 5,000 Notes:
1. Employment figures generally relate to 1981 for larger units and to 1980 or earlier years for the smaller units.
2. Units with fewer than 20 employees are not generally covered in Business Statistics Office inquiries and estimates for these are less reliable. The register contains over 80,000 such units with employment recorded as over half a million.
3. Components do not add to totals due to rounding.
4. Manufacturing is defined as activity classified within Orders III to XIX of the Standard Industrial Classification (1968).