§ Mr. Geoffrey Robinsonasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list, for each year since 1979 to date, the percentage of 16 to 25-year-olds in Coventry who are unemployed, and the percentages of those young people who have been unemployed for one year, two years and three years or more.
§ Mr. Alan ClarkInformation on unemployed rates by age is not available below national level. The following table give available information for the old Coventry travel-to-work area.
779W
Unemployed aged 16–25 1–2 years 2–3 years Over 3 years years per cent. per cent. per cent. Registrations July 1979 9,173 9.6 2.2 1.0 July 1980 11,207 6.8 2.6 1.0 July 1981 13,958 13.8 2.5 1.7 July 1982 14,388 21.2 6.8 2.7 October 1982 15,104 19.9 8.1 3.3
Unemployed aged 16–25 1–2 years 2–3 years Over 3 years years per cent. per cent. per cent. Claimants October 1982 13,722 18.0 7.1 1.8 July 1983 13,861 21.4 7.7 4.0 July 1984 13,903 19.0 10.0 6.3
§ Mr. Wainwrightasked the Secretary of State for Employment how many people currently registered as unemployed in (a) Yorkshire and Humberside, (b) West Yorkshire and (c) the Huddersfield area have now been jobless for more than 12 months; and of this number how many are aged (i) under 25 years, (ii) under 35 years, (iii) under 45 years and (iv) under 55 years.
§ Mr. Alan ClarkI refer the hon. Member to my letter to him of the 19 October. The information he requests is in the House of Commons Library.
§ Mr. Cohenasked the Secretary of State for Employment whether the new method of calculating unemployment levels will include (a) all men and women registered as unemployed but not receiving benefit, (b) all unemployed school leavers, (c) youths on youth training schemes and (d) all long-term unemployed men over 60 years of age; and if he will make a statment.
§ Mr. Alan ClarkThe monthly unemployment count continues to be based on the number of people claiming benefit, that is unemployment benefit, supplementary benefit or national insurance credits, at unemployment benefit offices. The changes being made to compile the figures by electoral wards enable totals to be produced for parliamentary constituencies, local authority districts and the revised travel-to-work areas, but the coverage of the national figures remains the same.
§ Mr. McCrindleasked the Secretary of State for Employment how many people have been unemployed for more than a year; how this compares with a similar date in 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, and 1983, respectively; of these, how many between 50 years of age and 59 years of age; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Alan ClarkThe following table gives the available figures at July of each year for Great Britain. The comparisons are affected by the change in the basis of the unemployment count in October 1982.
Unemployed over one year Registered unemployed Total 50 to 59 Years of Age July 1979 340,543 82,729 July 1980 343,497 84,347 July 1981 593, 882 116,338 July 1982 1,022,893 190,357 Unemployed Claimants July 1983* 1,050,431 219,661 July 1984* 1,176,220 263,029 * Figures affected by the 1983 Budget provisions which meant that some men mainly aged 60 and over no longer had to sign on at an unemployment benefit office in order to receive supplementary benefit or national insurance credits.