HC Deb 21 July 1988 vol 137 cc781-91W
Mr. Moss

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many full-time jobs in agriculture have been lost, by county, in each of the past five years.

Mr. Donald Thompson

[pursuant to his reply, 12 July 1988, c. 133–34]: Information from the June agricultural censuses in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern

Table 1
Numbers of regular whole-time hired workers engaged in agriculture in England 1982–87
County 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Cleveland 300 285 266 262 232 216
Cumbria 1,928 1,948 1,854 1,801 1,603 1,481
Durham 1,009 953 875 849 760 657
Northumberland 2,013 2,008 1,898 1,822 1,719 1,585
Tyne and Wear 267 237 231 226 181 170
Humberside 4,314 1,298 4,161 3,988 3,814 3,672
North Yorkshire—(Northallerton) 4,334 1,498 4,153 4,025 3,786 3,708
North Yorkshire—(Beverley) 1,051 1,001 960 890 825 891
South Yorkshire 690 654 634 604 602 574
West Yorkshire 1,224 1,213 1,176 1,136 997 1,111
Derbyshire 1,158 1,093 1,041 990 917 900
Leicestershire 1,779 1,765 1,638 1,589 1,469 1,391
Lincolnshire 8,515 1,372 7,976 7,583 7,155 6,763
Northamptonshire 1,556 1,485 1,392 1,320 1,244 1,230
Nottinghamshire 1,802 1,748 1,644 1,770 1,626 1,554
Cambridgeshire 4,250 4,225 4,025 3,859 3,523 3,361
Norfolk 7,915 7,593 7,309 6,985 6,566 6,148
Suffolk 5,089 1,975 4,740 4,694 4,420 4,153
Bedfordshire 1,426 1,403 1,302 1,238 1,156 1,090
Berkshire 1,274 1,258 1,227 1,155 1,117 1,073
Buckinghamshire 1,488 1,518 1,427 1,366 1,308 1,194
East Sussex 1,476 1,427 1,340 1,281 1,126 1,100

engaged in (a) lamb, (b) beef and (c) cereal production in each of the English regions, and in England as a whole during each year since 1979.

Mr. Donald Thompson

[holding answer 20 July 1988]: I regret that information in precisely the form requested is not available. The tables, however, give results from the agricultural census for England at June each year for holdings with sheep and lambs, beef cattle and calves, and cereals.

Ireland on the numbers of full-time farmers, partners and directors, family workers, hired workers and salaried managers working on agricultural holdings is set out in the tables. These figures reflect the levels of employment at June in each year. A comparison between the figures for any two years does not, however, measure the change in the number of full-time jobs, as information on the number of vacancies is not recorded.

County 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Essex 4,242 4,143 3,924 3,846 3,624 3,326
Greater London (East) 236 228 224 275 249 243
Greater London (South East) 438 422 425 319 295 260
Hampshire 3,957 3,772 3,726 3,585 3,442 3,398
Hertfordshire 1,725 1,675 1,561 1,370 1,273 1,140
Isle of Wight 420 389 368 346 333 309
Kent 5,393 5,431 5,327 5,079 4,781 4,575
Oxfordshire 2,482 2,485 2,389 2,318 2,091 1,952
Surrey 2,129 2,111 2,101 1,991 1,822 1,634
West Sussex 3,953 3,706 3,733 3,683 3,301 2,754
Avon 1,354 1,323 1,242 1,148 1,098 1,060
Cornwall 2,048 2,046 1,925 1,875 1,697 1,647
Devon 3,573 3,504 3,313 3,169 2,869 2,737
Dorset 2,578 2,562 2,412 2,336 2,192 2,052
Gloucestershire 2,174 2,194 2,139 2,041 1,853 1,754
Isles of Scilly 17 13 15 16 15 14
Somerset 2,981 2,979 2,806 2,659 2,508 2,396
Wiltshire 3,317 3,269 3,101 3,006 2,763 2,551
Hereford and Worcester 3,857 3,714 3,519 3,467 3,165 2,992
Shropshire 3,034 2,986 2,934 2,823 2,498 2,393
Staffordshire 1,959 2,019 1,862 1,776 1,616 1,548
Warwickshire 1,532 1,568 1,509 1,512 1,355 1,330
West Midlands 265 256 255 234 215 220
Cheshire 2,719 2,787 2,564 2,473 2,358 2,219
Greater Manchester 526 526 507 478 469 413
Lancashire 2,410 2,452 2,417 2,346 2,255 2,226
Merseyside 422 399 415 386 333 320
England 114,599 109,916 107,982 103,990 96,616 91,485

Numbers of salaried managers engaged in agriculture in England 1982–87
County 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Cleveland 28 26 30 32 31 27
Cumbria 76 78 79 83 85 83
Durham 34 31 33 33 32 31
Northumberland 82 81 80 92 85 80
Tyne and Wear 3 4 3 10 9 8
Humberside 195 200 198 223 233 234
North Yorkshire-(North Allerton) 223 210 224 233 234 224
North Yorkshire-(Beverley) 57 58 51 93 93 62
South Yorkshire 26 26 23 27 32 31
West Yorkshire 68 62 66 57 62 71
Derbyshire 52 44 47 50 52 50
Leicestershire 83 84 100 104 92 108
Lincolnshire 466 469 462 479 481 447
Northamptonshire 102 107 108 114 111 121
Nottinghamshire 94 96 101 135 120 121
Cambridgeshire 240 244 259 262 254 244
Norfolk 316 317 343 369 365 368
Suffolk 307 300 299 320 312 314
Bedfordshire 73 68 71 84 88 90
Berkshire 117 117 119 126 110 109
Buckinghamshire 154 156 151 155 150 154
East Sussex 131 135 130 133 129 124
Essex 291 286 255 276 274 189
Greater London (East) 23 19 20 20 26 22
Greater London (South East) 40 43 44 34 37 29
Hampshire 357 339 340 347 345 349
Hertfordshire 167 152 148 136 138 141
Isle of Wight 26 20 20 22 22 19
Kent 363 379 371 388 433 376
Oxfordshire 178 183 174 196 196 198
Surrey 206 201 197 197 187 192
West Sussex 284 271 279 300 303 283
Avon 58 67 104 108 107 113
Cornwall 65 69 67 63 69 68
Devon 152 142 142 166 168 151
Dorset 164 162 158 155 161 149
Gloucestershire 174 169 170 190 187 180
Isles of Scilly 1 1 1 1 1 2
Somerset 141 130 143 146 154 142
Wiltshire 235 224 229 244 261 249
Hereford and Worcester 259 253 229 243 257 247
Shropshire 122 117 125 123 123 121
Staffordshire 68 75 75 89 76 79
Warwickshire 96 94 99 109 101 120

County 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
West Midlands 13 11 14 13 15 14
Cheshire 143 153 151 148 149 159
Greater Manchester 15 20 20 22 19 18
Lancashire 112 115 112 134 135 137
Merseyside 17 18 18 16 16 18
England 6,697 6,626 6,682 7,100 7,120 6,966

Table 3
Numbers of whole-time farmers, partners and directors engaged in agriculture in England 1982–87
County 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Cleveland 455 452 444 442 439 430
Cumbria 6,400 6,383 6,294 6,241 6,190 6,141
Durham 2102 2,097 2,097 2,061 2,036 2,029
Northumberland 2,320 2,356 2,332 2,351 2,328 2,323
Tyne and Wear 287 289 283 274 260 246
Humberside 3,767 3,740 3,728 3,663 3,636 3,521
North Yorkshire—(North Allerton) 7,841 7,782 7,790 7679 7,669 7,508
North Yorkshire—(Beverley) 921 927 945 921 908 892
South Yorkshire 1,300 1,304 1,301 1,292 1,287 1,270
West Yorkshire 2,256 2,233 2,228 2,232 2,202 2,222
Derbyshire 3,301 3,300 3,271 3,221 3,219 3,150
Leicestershire 2,624 2,573 2,573 2,554 2,499 2,473
Lincolnshire 5,966 5,845 5,873 5,737 5,713 5,642
Northamptonshire 1,741 1,720 1,744 1,715 1,695 1,663
Nottinghamshire 1,967 1,939 1,925 1,887 1,881 1,863
Cambridgeshire 3,680 3,638 3,604 3,566 3,494 3,418
Norfolk 4,603 4,517 4,502 4,417 4,378 4,271
Suffolk 3,356 3,281 3,241 3,210 3,187 3,112
Bedfordshire 1,179 1,216 1,222 1,245 1,209 1,190
Berkshire 622 627 606 606 596 596
Buckinghamshire 1,503 1,529 1,530 1,487 1,439 1,411
East Sussex 1,612 1,592 1,568 1,571 1,533 1,500
Essex 3,201 3,135 3,151 3,091 3,059 3,023
Greater London (East) 128 135 139 131 125 125
Greater London (South East) 260 254 265 281 241 236
Hampshire 2,306 2,285 2,291 2,247 2,241 2,183
Hertfordshire 1,074 1,054 1,072 1,031 993 988
Isle of Wight 376 383 394 394 399 407
Kent 3,299 3,297 3,282 3,160 3,120 3,030
Oxfordshire 1,775 1,785 1,769 1,720 1,710 1,691
Surrey 1,106 1,066 1,086 1,052 1,052 1,023
West Sussex 1,596 1,560 1,582 1,523 1,506 1,510
Avon 1,756 1,737 1,752 1,723 1,686 1,665
Cornwall 5,857 5,802 5,841 5,711 5,649 5,516
Devon 9,520 9,531 9,502 9,437 9,297 9,169
Dorset 2,442 2,433 2,464 2,367 2,317 2,318
Gloucestershire 2,553 2,534 2,471 2,566 2,495 2,479
Isles of Scilly 59 57 56 55 57 53
Somerset 4,867 4818 4,862 4,809 4,728 4,691
Wiltshire 2,578 2,538 2,532 2,509 2,481 2,408
Hereford and Worcester 5,660 5,633 5,663 5,586 5,509 5,424
Shropshire 4,547 4,529 4,542 4,482 4,396 4,333
Staffordshire 4,033 4,003 4,000 3,939 3,890 3,810
Warwickshire 2,048 2,007 2,027 1,999 2,002 1,965
West Midlands 403 398 398 392 391 389
Cheshire 4,014 3,938 3,959 3,852 3,810 3,769
Greater Manchester 1,306 1,274 1,309 1,268 1,237 1,228
Lancashire 5,490 5,368 5,359 5,230 5,201 5,114
Merseyside 497 490 509 510 493 467
England 132,554 131,384 131,478 129,437 127,883 125,885

Numbers of whole-time family workers engaged in agriculture in England 1982–87
County 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Cleveland 71 64 65 70 84 80
Cumbria 1,013 985 1,052 1,089 1,124 1,139
Durham 295 302 315 324 333 332
Northumberland 363 375 370 385 379 379
Tyne and Wear 48 38 42 49 57 47
Humberside 586 571 595 614 681 646
North Yorkshire—(Northallerton) 1,153 1,152 1,153 1,249 1,360 1,271
North Yorkshire—(Beverley) 164 156 138 149 152 131
South Yorkshire 196 214 198 206 227 248
West Yorkshire 402 351 360 396 469 405

County 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Derbyshire 499 510 496 546 557 579
Leicestershire 372 389 419 438 459 447
Lincolnshire 770 779 742 831 935 922
Northamptonshire 277 260 275 279 286 270
Nottinghamshire 329 313 332 350 401 362
Cambridgeshire 511 531 469 501 535 533
Norfolk 559 540 579 648 705 640
Suffolk 460 427 419 419 475 489
Bedfordshire 176 172 183 194 202 172
Berkshire 100 98 95 97 120 121
Buckinghamshire 234 231 216 206 280 289
East Sussex 236 230 223 226 247 226
Essex 443 436 441 417 510 516
Greater London (East) 20 24 24 26 18 18
Greater London (South-East) 52 63 63 71 61 58
Hampshire 327 339 322 369 376 370
Hertfordshire 167 182 165 171 214 216
Isle of Wight 62 57 56 65 73 70
Kent 503 441 470 493 516 530
Oxfordshire 231 239 239 246 280 245
Surrey 167 185 193 186 198 266
West Sussex 184 185 195 192 249 251
Avon 297 289 272 301 310 279
Cornwall 838 814 813 817 911 844
Devon 1,456 1,399 1,434 1,484 1,516 1,438
Dorset 350 352 385 424 463 454
Gloucestershire 367 394 370 390 442 451
Isles of Scilly 7 4 5 5 7 9
Somerset 742 733 749 764 865 823
Wiltshire 398 410 432 433 505 501
Hereford and Worcester 728 689 752 788 859 836
Shropshire 703 714 710 746 859 785
Staffordshire 648 597 635 672 655 659
Warwickshire 312 324 340 295 350 310
West Midlands 54 58 72 77 74 72
Cheshire 668 679 712 734 781 775
Greater Manchester 245 233 236 229 215 229
Lancashire 946 935 940 977 1,023 967
Merseyside 89 90 87 97 99 93
England 19,818 19,553 19,848 20,735 22,497 21,793

Table 5
Numbers of regular whole-time workers engaged in agriculture in Wales 1982–87
County 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Clwyd 1,017 1,020 827 745 726 695
Dyfed 1,653 1,388 1,332 1,247 1,151 1,061
Gwent 422 413 394 349 325 298
Gwynedd 592 591 546 547 516 471
Mid Glamorgan 126 114 112 115 96 88
Powys 765 807 717 724 655 600
South Glamorgan 171 191 221 227 193 192
West Glamorgan 92 97 96 89 79 77
Wales 4,838 4,621 4,245 4,043 3,741 3,482

Table 6
Numbers of salaried managers engaged in agriculture in Wales 1982–87
County 1982 1983 1984 1985 1956 1987
Clwyd 81 79 54 56 60 57
Dyfed 59 61 68 73 80 72
Gwent 23 24 31 29 32 33
Gwynedd 57 51 46 45 48 49
Mid Glamorgan 5 6 5 7 9 10
Powys 25 26 36 35 39 42
South Glamorgan 10 16 18 18 18 18
West Glamorgan 12 10 9 9 8 8
Wales 272 273 267 272 294 289

Table 7
Numbers of whole-time farmers, partners and directors engaged in agriculture in Wales 1982–87
County 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Clwyd 3,250 3,154 3,330 3,215 3,197 3,094
Dyfed 9,256 8,972 9,505 9,166 9,129 8,847
Gwent 1,708 1,648 1,741 1,678 1,685 1,615
Gwynedd 3,591 3,444 3,763 3,608 3,544 3,433
Mid Glamorgan 704 702 754 721 745 687
Powys 5,012 4,866 5,147 4,995 5,034 4,829
South Glamorgan 462 450 443 438 418 409
West Glamorgan 634 627 676 640 651 632
Wales 24,617 23,863 25,359 24,461 24,403 23,546

Table 8
Numbers of whole-time family workers engagt d in agriculture in Northern Ireland 1982–87
County 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Clwyd 498 486 454 515 499 467
Dyfed 1,244 1,264 1,154 1,256 1,309 1,273
Gwent 228 241 228 243 260 246
Gwynedd 474 448 443 446 479 478
Mid Glamorgan 80 75 74 73 68 78
Powys 703 683 642 673 704 690
South Glamorgan 75 68 61 63 69 69
West Glamorgan 94 65 47 56 76 82
Wales 3,396 3,330 3,103 3,325 3,464 3,383

Table 9
Number of regular whole-time workers engaged in agriculture in Northern Ireland 1982–87
County 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Antrim 538 548 506 455 464 434
Armagh 256 236 246 232 218 226
Down 716 699 671 623 572 601
Fermanagh 169 178 147 164 136 132
Londonderry 381 337 315 318 318 297
Tyrone 409 419 411 383 372 376
Northern Ireland 2,469 2,417 2,296 2,175 2,080 2,066

Table 10
Number of whole-time farmers, partners and directors engaged in agriculture in Northern Ireland 1982–87
County 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Antrim 5,140 5,091 5,060 4,912 4,876 4,828
Armagh 3,274 3,217 3,198 3,112 3,096 3,060
Down 5,284 5,209 5,169 5,054 4,990 4,905
Fermanagh 3,051 3,011 3,014 2,919 2,888 2,802
Londonderry 3,618 3,510 3,534 3,455 3,443 3,357
Tyrone 5,956 5,979 5,950 5,872 5,789 5,631
Northern Ireland 26,323 26,017 25,925 25,324 25,082 24,583

Table 11
Numbers of whole-time family workers engaged in agriculture in Northern Ireland 1982–87
County 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Antrim 921 903 894 903 841 816
Armagh 540 515 473 467 459 474
Down 952 913 892 836 817 732
Fermanagh 509 471 448 420 368 400
Londonderry 626 617 615 575 499 494
Tyrone 1,060 1,003 978 886 918 841
Northern Ireland 4,608 4,422 4,300 4,087 3,902 3,757

Note: Data on the number of salaried managers in Northern Ireland are not collected.

Table 12
Numbers of regular whole-time hired workers engaged in agriculture in Scotland 1982–87
Region 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Highlands and Islands 1,480 1,485 1,422 1,394 1,261 1,177
Grampian 3,930 3,869 3,633 3,536 3,305 3,035
Tayside 3,076 2,946 2,836 2,717 2,512 2,344

Region 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Fife 1,279 1,242 1,165 1,205 1,059 1,039
Lothian 1,677 1,583 1,373 1,421 1,242 1,182
Borders 2,169 2,133 2,057 1,977 1,825 1,727
Central 591 549 517 501 445 435
Strathclyde 2,624 2,624 2,561 2,434 2,267 2,176
Dumfries and Galloway 2,738 2,669 2,597 2,506 2,362 2,197
Scotland 19,564 19,100 18,161 17,691 16,278 15,312

Table 13
Numbers of regular whole-time family workers engaged in agriculture in Scotland 1982–87
Region 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Highland and Islands 896 838 814 796 756 705
Grampian 1,501 1,485 1,464 1,405 1,368 1,316
Tayside 726 724 705 726 679 682
Fife 332 355 340 342 324 304
Lothian 286 315 319 291 307 280
Borders 482 494 492 491 498 480
Central 298 314 319 320 315 303
Strathclyde 1,859 1,878 1,852 1,843 1,810 1,792
Dumfries and Galloway 1,072 1,107 1,104 1,115 1,097 1,071
Scotland 7,452 7,510 7,409 7,329 7,154 6,933

Table 14
Numbers of occupiers engaged in agriculture in Scotland 1982–87
Region 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Highland and Islands 2,304 2,351 2,312 2,336 2,294 2,259
Grampian 3,286 3,199 3,161 3,128 3,036 3,046
Tayside 1,434 1,426 1,388 1,417 1,365 1,406
Fife 546 538 525 522 500 516
Lothian 517 510 488 475 478 475
Borders 792 773 786 798 783 809
Central 522 522 524 520 509 504
Strathclyde 3,091 3,024 2,974 3,020 2,931 2,888
Dumfries and Galloway 1,721 1,711 1,665 1,668 1,638 1,650
Scotland 14,213 14,054 13,823 13,884 13,534 13,553

Notes: (i) Occupiers only include the principal farmer partner or director.

Data on the number of salaried managers in Scotland are not collected.

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