§ Mr. Ralph HowellTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will give details of the number of persons employed in the United Kingdom in(a) the civil service, (b) local government, (c) the national health service, (d) the armed forces and (e) public corporations, for each of the years 1961, 1979, 1985 and 1990;
(2) how many persons were employed in the entire public sector in the United Kingdom (a) in 1961 and (b) at the latest date for which figures are available; and what percentage increase this represents.
§ Mr. MellorThe information requested can be found in appendix 1, table 2 of the article on "Employment in the public and private sectors" which appeared in the December 1990 edition of the Central Statistical Office's "Economic Trends" publication. A copy is available in the Library. The percentage increase in the number of persons employed in the public sector in the United Kingdom over the period 1961 to 1990 was 3 per cent.