HL Deb 26 July 1999 vol 604 cc143-4WA
Lord Brabazon of Tara

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they will list the local authority wards of Great Britain, as existing in 1991, ranked by the level of unemployment. [HL3801]

Lord McIntosh of Haringey

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Director of the Office for National Statistics who has been asked to reply.

Letter from the Director of the Office for National Statistics, Dr. Tim Holt, dated 26 July 1999.

As Director of the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your recent parliamentary question on unemployment in local authority wards of Great Britain as existing in 1991.

The ONS publish a monthly count of claimants of unemployment-related benefits. The claimant count consists of all people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance or National Insurance credits at Employment Service local offices. They must declare that they are out of work, capable of, available for and actively seeking work during the week in which the claim is made.

Information on the levels of claimant count by local authority wards based on the 1991 census are available from January 1996 onwards, though to list wards ranked by level of unemployment could only be done at disproportionate cost.