§ Mr. WigleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many self-employed persons have been taken into account in recalculating the unemployment percentages for each of the employment offices in Wales; and what was the source of these figures of self-employment and the date to which they refer.
§ Mr. NichollsI have been asked to reply as the methodology used to calculate unemployment rates in the United Kingdom is the responsibility of my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State.
The smallest areas for which unemployment rates are calculated are travel-to-work areas. Local rates calculated as a percentage of the total work force were introduced for these areas and for counties in October 1989. These calculations incorporate local allowances for the self-employed based upon census of population and labour force survey results. The latest estimates relate to June 1988 and will be updated in the light of forthcoming information. These local self-employment estimates are sufficiently reliable to be used only as a small component of the work force denominator. Estimates of the total work force for these areas are available in the Library.