§ Mr. Frank FieldTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of working age people were in work in the spring quarter of(a) 1998, (b) 1999, (c) 2000 and (d) 2001 according to Labour Force Survey data. [5956]
§ Mr. BoatengThe information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
Letter from John Kidgell to Mr. Frank Field, dated 20 July 2001:
578WThe National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question concerning employment rates of working age people. I am replying in his absence (5956).People aged 16 or over are classed as in employment by the Labour Force Survey (LFS) if they have done at least one hour of paid work (as an employee of self-employed) in the week prior to their LFS interview or if they have a job that they are temporarily away from. People who do unpaid work in a family business and people on Government-supported training and employment programmes are also included according to the International Labour Organisation convention.The table overleaf gives the LFS estimates of the proportion of working age people who were in employment in the spring quarter of 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2001.
Proportion of working age people in employment in the United Kingdom spring (March to May) 1998 to spring 2001; not seasonally adjusted Percentage Spring 1998 73.1 Spring 1999 73.6 Spring 2000 74.3 Spring 2001 74.6 Source:
ONS Labour Force Survey
§ Mr. Frank FieldTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the employment rates are, on Labour Force Survey data, of(a) people over 50 years of age, (b) ethnic minorities, (c) lone parents and (d) those with an illness or disability, for each of the past four years. [5954]
§ Mr. BoatengThe information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
Letter from John Kidgell to Mr. Frank Field, dated 20 July 2001:
The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question about employment rates of various groups (5954). I am replying in his absence.The table overleaf gives estimates of employment rates for autumn 1997 to autumn 2000. Estimates of employment rates of people with a long-term disability are not available for autumn 1997 as disability status using the Disability Discrimination Act definition is only available on a consistent basis from 1998.
Employment rates of various groups: United Kingdom; autumn (September-November) 1997 to autumn 2000; not seasonally adjusted Percentage People aged over 50 Ethnic minorities Lone parents with dependent children Long-term disabled1 Autumn 1997 30.5 52.3 45.9 2— Autumn 1998 32.0 53.4 47.0 45.2 Autumn 1999 32.6 53.9 48.5 46.8 Autumn 2000 33.3 53.1 50.0 46.9 1 Rates are for men aged 16–64 and women aged 16–59 2 Data not available