§ Mr. Ieuan Wyn JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the total civilian work force employed by his Department in Wales; and what were the corresponding figures for each year since 1979.
§ Mr. SainsburyThe number of full-time equivalent civilian staff, excluding casual staff, employed by the Ministry of Defence in Wales as at 1 October 1987 was 5,944.
Corresponding figures for each year from 1979 to 1986 are as follows:
Number 1979 (1 January) 7,659 1980 (1 October) 7,600 1981 (1 October) 7,273 1982 (1 October) 7,024 1983 (1 October) 6,925 1984 (1 October) 6,680 1985 (1 October) 6,396 1986 (1 October) 6,236 For the purposes of consistency and comparability the above figures exclude personnel employed at Royal Ordnance factories, which ceased to be part of the Ministry of Defence on 2 January 1985.
Ministry of Defence full-time equivalent staff in Wales have therefore reduced by 12.9 per cent. between 1 January 1979 and 1 October 1987. Although the figures for 303W Scotland and England are not available in precisely the same form, it is estimated that the corresponding reductions for Scotland and England are 10 per cent. and 26 per cent., respectively.