HC Deb 08 March 1983 vol 38 cc360-1W
Mr. Strang

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many jobs in the public sector have been lost in each of the last four years in Edinburgh, East Lothian, West Lothian, Midlothian and Scotland, respectively.

Mr. Alexander Fletcher

Comprehensive information on employment changes in the public sector in Scotland is not available. The following table shows the net changes in numbers employed in the years in question in Civil Service Departments, the National Health Service and local authorities. The figures show the balance between employment losses and recruitment.

Total employment base year* Net employment change
(000) 1979 1980 1981 1982
Lothian Health Board 18.4 -163 +419 +557 +597
Scotland 118.2 +1,979 +3,023 +3,651 +1,388
Local Authorities
Edinburgh District Council 4.3 +54 -17 + 15 +78
East Lothian District Council 1.0 -49 +31 -79 +94
West Lothian District Council 1.4 +69 +27 -11 +38
Midlothian District Council 0.8 +9 + 22 - 8 +31
Lothian Regional Council¶ 36.9 +1,762 -153 -862 -1,157
Scotland 292.5 +8,522 -628 -7,959 +912
Notes:
* Base year employment totals relate to 1 January 1979 in the case of Civil Service Departments, 30 September 1978 in the case of the NHS, and December 1978 in the case of local authorities.
† Full-time equivalents. Net employment changes relate to calendar years except for 1982 (1 January to 1 October).
‡Full-time equivalents. Net employment changes relate to the year to 30 September; 1982 figures are provisional.
║ Full-time plus part-time employees. Net employment changes relate to the year to December, except for 1982 (September). Figures cover all local authority staff apart from part-time evening class teachers, part-time youth, community and administrative staff working in evenings, retained-reserve firemen, special constables and people employed under schemes wholly funded by the Manpower Services Commission.
¶ Figures cover Lothian regional authority's employment plus Lothian and Borders fire brigade, Lothian and Borders police and Forth Road Bridge staff.