HC Deb 16 February 1993 vol 219 cc182-4W
14. Mr. Connarty

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the rate of unemployment in the United Kingdom; and what is the average rate in European Community member states.

Mr. Michael Forsyth

10.7 per cent, and 9.6 per cent. respectively, excluding Denmark, Greece and Luxembourg.

17. Mr. Ian Bruce

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many unemployed people were placed by the Employment Service during each quarter of 1992; and what were the targets set for the year.

Mrs. Gillian Shephard

I am delighted to be able to tell my hon. Friend that the Employment Service placed 312,000 unemployed people in the first quarter of 1992; 350,000 in the second quarter; 379,000 in the third quarter; and 367,000 in the fourth quarter. This is 10 per cent, more than the planned level. The agency is well on course to achieve its 1992–93 target of more than 1.4 million job placings by March this year.

21. Mr. Matthew Taylor

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if she will make a statement on the latest unemployment figures for Cornwall.

Mr. McLoughlin

In December 1992 there were 28,606 claimant unemployed people in the county of Cornwall. This figure is on the unadjusted basis.

22. Mr. Martlew

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the level of unemployment in the Carlisle travel-to-work area.

Mr. McLoughlin

In December 1992 there were 4,133 unemployed claimants in the Carlisle travel-to-work-area. This figure is on the unadjusted basis.

23. Mr. Gapes

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what was the number of unemployed in Ilford, South in January 1979, January 1990, January 1991, January 1992 and January 1993; and how many registered job vacancies there were on the same dates; and if she will make a statement.

Mr. McLoughlin

Unadjusted claimant unemployed in the Ilford, South constituency was 1,762 in January 1990, 2,615 in January 1991 and 4,259 in January 1992. The corresponding numbers of jobcentre vacancies were 102, 42 and 42 respectively. However, the latter represent only a minor proportion of the total number of jobs available to the unemployed of Ilford, South.

25. Mr. Wray

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people are currently unemployed in the United Kingdom; and if she will provide a breakdown by age.

Mrs. Gillian Shephard

In December 1992, on the seasonally adjusted basis, there were 2,973,500 unemployed claimants in the United Kingdom. In October 1992, the latest date for which figures by age are available, those aged 24 and under, and those aged 40 and over each constituted just under one third of the total. More details can be obtained from the NOMIS database in the Library.

Mr. Fraser

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people in Lambeth have been unemployed for(a) more than six months, (b) more than 12 months and (c) more than two years.

Mr. McLoughlin

The information requested is contained in the table and can also be obtained from the NOMIS database system in the Library.

Duration of unemployment in the Lambeth local authority district (October 1992)
Duration of Unemployment Number of Claimant Unemployed
Over 6 months 15,119
Over 12 months 9,824
Over 2 years 4,225

Note:

Claimant unemployment figures by duration are available on a quarterly basis for the months of January, April, July and October and are not adjusted for seasonal influences.

Mr. Ronnie Campbell

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the(a) number and (b) rate of long-term unemployed for more than one year in the Blyth Valley area.

Mr. McLoughlin

In October 1992, the latest date for which claimant unemployment figures by duration are available, 1,243 people—or 33 per cent. of all unemployed claimants—in the Blyth Valley parliamentary constituency had been unemployed for over one year. An official unemployment rate is not available.