HC Deb 20 December 1984 vol 70 c313W
Mr. Coombs

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what has been the number of job losses in the food and drink industries since 1 May.

Mr. Alan Clark

Information about job gains and job losses is not available from the Department's statistics, but an indication of net changes can be seen by comparing levels of employees in employment at different dates.

Between May and October, in Great Britain, the estimated number of employees in employment in the food and drink manufacturing industries (activity headings 4115–4283 of the 1980 Standard Industrial Classification) increased by 17,200. The estimate for October, the latest available, is provisional.