Manufacturing Industry (Hansard, 2 November 2000)

§ 18. Mr. Nicholas Winterton
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps he is taking to improve the long-term viability of manufacturing industry. [133906]

§ Mr. Alan Johnson
We are assisting manufacturing industry to improve its long-term prospects by providing a stable macro-economic framework and by pursuing policies that help firms to innovate and grow.

§ 21. Mr. Ronnie Campbell
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the performance of manufacturing industry in the north-east. [133911]

§ Mrs. Liddell
The performance of manufacturing industry in the north-east is constantly assessed by a number of organisations. The Government Office for the north-east and the regional development agency, ONE NorthEast, are in regular contact with other partners over business matters in the region.

§ 22. Mr. Corbett
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the performance of manufacturing industry in the west midlands. [133912]

§ Mrs. Liddell
The Government Office for the West Midlands and Advantage West Midlands, the regional development agency, work closely with partners on matters relating to business and the regional economy. In addition to national assessments such as the Annual Census of Production, the regional studies have included an assessment of the automotive industry as part of the work of the Rover Task Force.

35. Mr. Michael J. Foster
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will assess the performance of manufacturing industry in Worcestershire. [133925]

§ Mr. Alan Johnson
There are no plans to assess the performance of manufacturing industry specifically at the national, regional or sub-regional level. The Annual Census of Production, which is compiled by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) as part of the Annual Business Inquiry, does give some indication of relative 579W performance of manufacturing industry in that it provides data on gross value added per employee on a national and regional basis. This information is freely available in publications such as "Regional Trends" and the "Regional Competitiveness" Indicators. This information can be analysed at a sub-regional level but the ONS does charge for this service. However, the DTI does pay for a sub-regional analysis on a Training and Enterprise Council (TEC) area.