HC Deb 23 February 1988 vol 128 cc127-9W
Mr. Meacher

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will show by region, including Greater London, and by male and female, the numbers of people who were(a) without jobs and who looked for work in the four weeks before their labour force survey interview and were available to start work within two weeks, who wanted full-time jobs, the number who wanted part-time jobs and the number who had no preference, (b) unemployed according to the standard labour force survey definition who were looking for full-time jobs and the number looking for part-time jobs and the number who had no preference, (c) in part-time jobs who were looking for a different job with longer hours or looking for an additional job, (d) looking for a different job with shorter hours, (d) claimants not unemployed by the definition using broad International Labour Organisation guidelines on the grounds that they were employed and (f) claimants not unemployed by the conventional labour force survey definition on the grounds that they were employed.

Mr. Lee

[holding answer 22 February 1988]: The available information from the preliminary results of the 1987 labour force survey is as shown in the following tables:

1 GB labour force definition.

2 People looking for work as self-employed were not asked if they would prefer to work full or part-time.

* Sample size too small for a reliable estimate.

Table 3
Persons in employment in part-time jobs1 looking for a different job with longer hours or an additional job Spring 1987
Thousands
Males Females
Great Britain 141 239
Northern 11 15
Yorkshire and Humberside 17 24
East Midlands 11 15
East Anglia * 11
South East 31 66
of which Greater London 14 21
South West 10 20
West Midlands 11 28
North West 19 34
Wales 15 *
Scotland 11 18
1 Based on the respondent's own assessment, not on the number of hours usually worked.
* Sample size too small for a reliable estimate.

Table 4
Persons in employment looking for a different job with shorter hours Spring 1987
Thousands
Males Females
Great Britain 209 97
Northern * *
Yorkshire and Humberside 20 14
East Midlands 17 *
East Anglia * *
South East 78 34
of which Greater London 29 17
South West 18 *
West Midlands 15 11
North West 25 *
Wales 11 *
Scotland * *
* Sample size too small for a reliable estimate.

It is estimated that there were 114,000 male and 80,000female claimants employed in Great Britain in spring 1987. However, a reliable analysis of employed claimants by region is not available.