§ Mr. FearnTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what is his Department's estimate of current vacancies in the catering sector in(a) the North West of England and (b) Sefton. [84416]
§ Mr. Andrew SmithThe Office for National Statistics publishes a seasonally unadjusted quarterly count of vacancies notified to Employment Service Jobcentres broken down by 1992 Standard Industrial Classification (SIC92) category—it combines catering and hotels.
(a) Focusing on Jobcentres in the North West Government Office Region:
in the 12 months ending April 1999, there were around 40,600 notified vacancies in the hotel and catering industry—representing approximately 15 per cent. of notified vacancies.
in April 1999, there were around 4,400 unfilled vacancies in the hotels and catering industry.
(b) Focusing on Jobcentres in the Sefton metropolitan district:
in the 12 months ending April 1999, there were around 1,900 notified vacancies in the hotel and catering industry—representing approximately 14 per cent. of notified vacancies.
in April 1999, there were around 200 unfilled vacancies in the hotels and catering industry.
Not all vacancies are, however, notified to Employment Service Jobcentres.