§ Mr. Barry JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what measures he will introduce to alleviate job insecurity among United Kingdom employees. [26360]
§ Miss WiddecombeTo alleviate job insecurity, businesses must be able to create jobs and individuals must be able to adapt to structural and technological change. The Government's economic policies provide the framework for sustained growth in jobs, and our employment and training measures help individuals find jobs and develop their skills and aptitudes. It is also important to remove unnecessary burdens on employers which deter them from creating new jobs as sales and
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§ Mr. OppenheimThere is not a simple relationship between the number of jobs and the level of unemployment, because of changes in the population of working age and activity rates. The following table shows that claimant unemployment is higher than in 1973, but the number in employment is also larger.
output rise. The Uk now has one of the most flexible and deregulated labour markets in Europe. It also has:
a higher proportion of its adult population in work than in any other major European country;fewer people out of work and claiming benefits than any other major European country; andone of the lowest proportions of temporary workers in Europe.We shall continue to resist measures such as the social chapter, a national minimum wage and a compulsory training levy which would put jobs at risk and add unnecessarily to job insecurity.