HC Deb 16 December 1999 vol 341 c278W
Mr. Jim Murphy

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many people have been employed by the tourism industry in each of the past 20 years(a) in total in the UK and (b) in each region. [101307]

Janet Anderson

[holding answer 6 December 1999]: The estimates of the number of employee and self-employment jobs in the tourism-related industries in Great Britain, Scotland, Wales and each region in England in each of the last 20 years for which information is available is presented in the table.

There is a discontinuity in each data series in 1994 owing to introduction of revised UK Standard Industrial Classifications. From 1994, SIC 92 codes were used to classify industries in employment surveys. Prior to that, SIC 80 codes were used. While generally the same industries were included within the definition for the tourism-related industries under both sets of classifications, there are differences. For instance, under SIC 92, the tourism-related industries include travel agencies and tour operators, while under SIC 80 some activities, such as the operating of fairgrounds, were included.

Estimates for the number of self-employed are provided by the Labour Force Survey, which bases its annual figures on employment in the spring months (March to May).

The employee jobs figures presented are taken from the Census of Employment (prior to 1994), the Annual Employment Survey (1995 to 1997) and the Short-term Employment Surveys (1994, 1998, 1999). Prior to 1995, the major employee jobs surveys were not carried out on an annual basis. The annual data taken from the Census of Employment and the Annual Employment Survey are from September each year, while figures presented from the Short-term Employment Surveys are for June each year.

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