§ Mr. PikeTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what measures and initiatives are being undertaken in the north-west to attract investment capital and industry; and if he will publish a table of capital investment in real terms showing the percentage increase this sum represents from May 1979 to the latest available date.
§ Mr. AtkinsI have been asked to reply.
My Department offers a range of incentives under its recently launched enterprise initiative which are designed to encourage industrial and commercial development in the north-west and elsewhere. The information sought by the hon. Member about capital investment is as follows. For the standard economic planning region of the northwest (which excludes Cumbria) the figures in the table imply the following percentage changes in manufacturing net capital expenditure from the 1979 base year figure of £971 million.
£ million (1979 prices) Calendar year Expenditure Per cent. change since 1979 1980 864 -11.0 1981 609 -37.3 1982 566 -41.7 1983 594 -38.8 1984 664 -31.6 1985 700 -27.9 1986 606 -37.6