§ Mrs. Bridget PrenticeTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of the population in(a) the London borough of Lewisham, (b) the SOLOTEC area, (c) the wider central area, (d) Greater London and (e) the rest of southern England, were self-employed, using the labour force survey and mid-year population estimates in each of the past three years. [2300]
§ Mrs. Angela KnightThe information falls within the responsibility of the chief executive of the Office for National Statistics. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Tim Holt to Mrs. Bridget Prentice, dated 12 November 1996:
The Chancellor of the Exchequer has asked me to reply as the Director of the Office for National Statistics to your recent question on the proportion of the population who are self-employed in the South East.The Labour Force Survey (LFS) covers the population in private households plus persons in NHS accommodation and students in halls of residence. The mid-year population estimates additionally cover the rest of the non-household population. It is therefore more appropriate to calculate the proportions who are self employed using LFS estimates. This information can be accessed through the NOMIS database by the House of Common Library.Mid-year population estimates taken from the Census of Population are published in Monitor—Population and Health. A copy of this publication is also available from the House of Commons Library.