§ Mr. Alex CarlileTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will give an estimate of the number of people employed in the United Kingdom steel industry in each year since 1979; and if he will make a statement concerning Government policy towards that industry.
§ Mr. LeighThe Department of Employment estimate the number of people employed in the United Kingdom steel industry in each year since 1979 as:
Year Employees (Thousands) June 1979 422.1 1980 383.6 1981 314.0 1982 284.9 1983 284.4 1984 240.2 1985 231.6 1986 215.1 1987 206.3 1988 209.5 1989 215.7 1990 216.0 The figures above are the sum of the Department of Employment's estimates for the following industries, classified according to the 1980 Standard Industrial Classification: iron and steel industry (group 221); ferrous metal foundries (activity heading 3111); forging, pressing and stamping (group 312); and industrial plant and steelwork (group 320). There are, in addition, various industries associated with the manufacture and processing of steel for which separate estimates for the dates specified are not available.
Government policy towards the steel industry, as for industry as a whole, is to set a framework for free and fair competition and the encouragement of enterprise.