§ Mr. Lathamasked the Prime Minister whether she is satisfied that the published unemployment statistics for the 104W newly-designated travel-to-work areas will be sufficiently homogeneous or localised to assist Ministers to detect unemployment black spots when they are framing decisions about the designation of assisted areas; and whether she will make a statement.
§ The Prime MinisterYes. The Department of Employment's travel-to-work areas are the closest available approximations to self-contained labour markets covering the whole country. This makes them the best building blocks for the assisted areas map. It would not be cost effective to use regional industrial policy to solve problems of unemployment black spots in the midst of areas of relatively low unemployment. Regional industrial policy is not well suited to tackle such localised problems.
My hon. Friend the Minister of State, Department of Trade and Industry intends to make a statement to the House shortly on regional industrial policy.