§ Mr. MilburnTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what percentage of the United Kingdom's working population live in areas which currently qualify for(a) assisted areas funding and (b) EC regional development funding.
§ Mr. Sainsbury[holding answer 2 November 1992]: The assisted areas currently cover approximately 32.6 per cent. of the United Kingdom's working population.
Working population figures eligible for EC regional development funding are not available. This is because reliable working population figures are only available at travel-to-work area (TTWA) level and many eligible areas are not complete TTWAs. The total population covered, however, is some 40 per cent. of the United Kingdom population.