§ Mr. CryerTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment if she will give the basis for the calculation of the number of self-employed persons currently engaged in work; and if she will make a statement.
§ Mr. McLoughlinSelf-employed estimates in the work force in employment series are derived from the 1981 census of population, updated annually from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food's agricultural census and quarterly, for other sectors, from the labour force survey (LFS).
Before 1992 the LFS was carried out annually. The results were used to produce estimates for June; figures for other quarters were derived by interpolation.
From spring 1992, the LFS has been conducted every quarter in Great Britain. The LFS provides an alternative estimate of people who are self-employed, based upon the respondents' own assessment of their employment status.