§ Ms KellyTo ask the Secretary for Defence what estimate he has made of the number of jobs in the United Kingdom(a) directly and (b) indirectly dependent on the European fighter aircraft project, broken down by (i) parliamentary constituency and (ii) region. [9686]
§ Mr. SpellarStatistics for defence industry"related employment are collated on a regional basis and figures for parliamentary constituencies are not readily available. Current estimates indicate that there are about 6,000 high technology jobs in the UK directly dependent on the Eurofighter programme, primarily in the north-west and south-west of England, but involving approximately 100 companies in many parts of the UK. At peak production, this figure is estimated to rise to 14,000. Figures for the number of jobs indirectly dependent on the programme are currently unavailable.