§ Mr. LoughtonTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the unemployment rate in each of the 20 largest metropolitan boroughs is and what it was in May 1997; and if he will make a statement. [129112]
§ Miss Melanie Johnson[holding answer 4 July 2000]: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Tim Loughton, dated 10 July 2000:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question about the unemployment rate in each of the 20 largest metropolitan boroughs.The ONS preferred measure of unemployment is the International Labour Organisation (ILO) unemployment rate, derived from the Labour Force Survey (LFS). However, LFS estimates are not available for single months.The ONS also publishes 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.Claimant count rates by local area on the unadjusted basis can be obtained from the Nomis database at the House of Commons Library.