§ 19. Mr. CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what are the latest youth unemployment figures for the Holloway travel-to-work area.
§ Mr. CopeIn the London travel-to-work area, of which Islington, North parliamentary constituency and Holloway are a part, there were about 54.500 unemployed claimants aged under 25 years.
§ 21. Mr. Roy HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what are the latest available unemployment figures for the United Kingdom and the comparable figures for 1979; and what they would have been without the changes in the method of counting unemployment.
§ Mr. CopeIn May 1989 the level of unemployment seasonally adjusted was 1,835,200, or 6.4 per cent. compared with 1,088,500 or 4.1 per cent in May 1979, on a consistent basis. It is not possible to estimate current unemployment on the basis prevailing in 1979.
§ 106. Mr. Neil HamiltonTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the reduction in long-term unemployment over the last 12 months.
§ 109. Mr. Andrew MitchellTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment by how much long-term unemployment has fallen over the past year; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. NichollsIn April 1989, the number of unemployed claimants in the United Kingdom who had been unemployed for 12 months or more was 744,120 compared with 1,029,206 in April 1988, a fall of 285,086 or 27.7 per cent.
§ 102. Mr. Teddy TaylorTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the current number of persons unemployed in the Southend-on-Sea area; and what was the comparable total in 1979.
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§ Mr. NichollsIn May 1989 there were 3,602 unemployed claimants in Southend-on-Sea local authority area. Comparable figures are not available for 1979 on the same administrative basis and because of changes in the coverage of the count.
§ 91. Mr. FlanneryTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what was the figure for unemployment in 1979; and what is the present figure.
§ Mr. NichollsIn May 1989 the level of unemployment, seasonally adjusted, in the United Kingdom was 1,835,200 or 6.4 per cent. compared with 1,088,500 or 4.1 per cent. in May 1979, on a consistent basis.
§ 92. Mr. Win GriffithsTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment in which standard planning regions in the United Kingdom there have been(a) increases and (b) reductions in employment since June 1979.
§ Mr. NichollsBetween June 1979 and June 1988 the civilian work force in employment(a) increased in the south-east (including London), East Anglia, south-west, west midlands, and east midlands, and (b) decreased in Yorkshire and Humberside, the north-west, north, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.
§ 89. Mr. HoltTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the rate of fall of unemployment in the United Kingdom and in other comparable European countries; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. NichollsThe table shows the fall in the unemployment rates over the past two years for the countries of the European Community. Over the past two years the rate of unemployment has fallen faster in the United Kingdom than in any other EC country.
Unemployment, latest month compared with two years earlier Country Latest month Percentage rate change United Kingdom1 May 1989 -318 Belgium March 1989 -2.6 Ireland May 1989 -1.6 France March 1989 -1.5 Germany May 1989 -0.9 Portugal March 1989 -0.7 Netherlands December 1988 -0.4 Greece April 1989 -0.3 Luxembourg March 1989 -0.3 Denmark January 1989 0.7 Italy February 1989 1.7 1 Seasonally adjusted series consistent with current coverage.
§ 83. Mr. DoverTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people aged between 18 and 24 years were unemployed in April 1988 and April 1989, respectively; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. NichollsIn April 1989, the number of unemployed claimants aged 18 to 24 years in the United Kingdom, was 530,376 compared with 697,718 in April 1988, a fall of 167,342 or 24 per cent.
78. Mr. Andy StewartTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment by how many the total of persons out of work for five years or more has fallen during the past year; and if he will make a statement.
§ 84. Mr. FavellTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment by how much the total out of work for five years or more has fallen since April last year; and if he will make a statement.
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§ Mr. NichollsIn April 1989 the number of unemployed claimants in the United Kingdom who had been unemployed for five years or more was 216,607 compared with 271,242 in April 1988, a fall of 54,635 or 20.1 per cent.
§ 69. Mr. KnapmanTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment by how much the number of people in employment rose in 1988 in the United Kingdom and in other Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. NichollsThe table shows, for the United Kingdom and the major OECD countries, the increase in civilian employment in the year to the fourth quarter of 1988. The United Kingdom had the largest percentage rise.
Increases in civilian employment United Kingdom and major OECD countries Thousands Percentage United Kingdom 642 2.5 Canada 288 2.4 United States of America 2,386 2.1 Japan 864 1.5 Germany (Federal Republic) 159 0.6 Italy 134 0.6 France n/a n/a n/a = not available.
Sources:
United Kingdom: Department of Employment.
Other countries: OECD Labour Force Statistics, 1989/1.
§ 68. Mr. Quentin DaviesTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the fall in long-term unemployed in the three months to April.
§ Mr. LeeIn April 1989, the number of unemployed claimants in the United Kingdom, who had been unemployed for 12 months or more, was 744,120 compared with 821,419 in January 1989, a fall of 77,299 or 9.4 per cent.
§ 57. Mr. FrenchTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment which major Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development country has had the sharpest fall in the rate of unemployment over the past two years; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. NichollsOver the past two years the unemployment rate has fallen faster in the United Kingdom than in any other major OECD country. The unemployment rate in the United Kingdom is now lower than the European Community average.
§ 58. Mr. NorrisTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the number of people employed in the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. NichollsBetween March 1983 and December 1988 the work force in employment in the United Kingdom increased by 2,948,000 to 26,510,000, the highest level on record. This rising trend has now continued for more than five years. The figures have been adjusted for the effects of seasonal variations. The work force in employment is the sum of employees in employment, the self-employed, Her Majesty's forces and participants in work-related Government training programmes.
§ 52. Mr. AmessTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the current level of unemployment in the United Kingdom.
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§ Mr. NichollsIn May 1989 the level of unemployment, seasonally adjusted, in the United Kingdom was 1,835,200 or 6.4 per cent. the lowest for more than eight years, on a consistent basis.
§ 54. Mrs. Maureen HicksTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment by how much long-term unemployment has fallen among the 18 to 24 age group in the past year; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. LeeIn April 1989, the number of unemployed claimants aged 18 to 24 years in the United Kingdom, who had been unemployed for 12 months or more, was 119,160 compared with 179,938 in April 1988, a fall of 60,778 or 33.8 per cent.
§ 47. Mr. GrocottTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment when he expects unemployment in the west midlands to fall to the level it was in 1979.
§ 48. Mr. Robert JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what has been the increase in the number of self-employed people in the United Kingdom since 1979; and if he will make a statement.
§ 53. Mr. FormanTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what has been the increase in the number of self-employed people in work since 1979; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. CopeBetween June 1979 and December 1988, the latest date for which estimates are available, there was an increase of 1,142,000, or 60 per cent., in the number of self-employed people in the United Kingdom. It is estimated that over 3 million people are now self-employed. Self-employed people now represent 11 per cent. of the work force in employment.
§ 37. Mr. KirkhopeTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what proportion of males and females are in employment in each major Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development country; and if he will make a statement.
§ 103. Mr. RoweTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment which major Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries have the highest proportion of women in employment; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. CopeThe latest comparative information relates to 1986 (except for Germany) and is given in the table. It shows the United Kingdom's percentage in employment to be significantly higher than those of our major European competitors, though lower than those of Japan and the United States. This country's relative position may well have become still better since 1986 as employment has increased more rapidly here than elsewhere.
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Percentage of those aged 15 to 64 in employment(including armed forces) Males Females Japan 85 56 United States of America 77 60 United Kingdom 77 56 Canada 76 57 Federal Republic of Germany1 74 46
Males Females Italy 74 35 France 70 48 1 1985 figures. Sources:
United Kingdom: Department of Employment.
Other countries: OECD Labour Force Statistics 1966 to 1986.
§ 34. Mr. David MartinTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment by how much the unemployment rate has fallen in the past two years in the United Kingdom and other European countries; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. NichollsThe table shows falls in unemployment rates over the past two years for the United Kingdom and other European countries. Over the past two years unemployment has fallen faster in the United Kingdom than in any other major industrialised country.
Unemployment,latest month compared with two years earlier Country Latest month Percentage rate change United Kingdom1 May 1989 -3.8 Spain March 1989 -2.8 Belgium March 1989 -2.6 Austria March 1989 -1.7 Finland February 1989 -1.7 Ireland May 1989 -1.6 France March 1989 -1.5 Germany May 1989 -0.9 Sweden March 1989 -0.9 Portugal March 1989 -0.7 Netherlands December 1988 -0.4 Switzerland March 1989 -0.3 Greece April 1989 -0.3 Luxembourg March 1989 -0.3 Denmark January 1989 0.7 Italy February 1989 1.7 Norway March 1989 2.5 1 Seasonally adjusted series consistent with current coverage.
§ 30. Mr. Ian BruceTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the current youth unemployment rate in the United Kingdom and in other comparable European countries; and if he will make a statement.
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§ Mr. NichollsThe table shows harmonised unemployment rates, seasonally adjusted, for those aged under 25 years, for March 1989 in the United Kingdom and other European Countries as published by the statistical office of the European Communities. The youth unemployment rate in the United Kingdom is about half the European Communities average.
Under 25 year olds seasonally adjusted unemployment rate March 1989 European country Total percentage rate Spain 36.7 Italy 31.9 Greece 24.4 Ireland 22.8 France 21.4 Belgium 18.7 Netherlands 16.4 Portugal 12.2 Denmark 9.6 Germany 5.2 Luxembourg 4.1 United Kingdom 9.6 EC average 18.1
§ 85. Mr. TraceyTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people are currently self-employed; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. CopeIn December 1988, the latest date for which estimates are available, there were, 3,048,000 self-employed in the United Kingdom. The numbers of self-employed have increased by 60 per cent. since June 1979 and currently represent 11 per cent. of the work force in employment.
§ 100. Mr. StevensTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what was the number of people self-employed in April 1989 and April 1983, respectively.
§ Mr. NichollsIn December 1988, the latest date for which figures are available there were 3,048,000 self-employed people in the United Kingdom and in March 1983 there were 1,906,000.