HC Deb 31 March 2003 vol 402 cc506-7W
Mr. Simon Thomas

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) what the total amount was of(a) electricity and (b) heat produced by the combustion of biodegradable municipal solid waste (i) including and (ii) excluding tyres in the United Kingdom every year since 1992; and what percentage of the total renewable energy produced these represented; [105669]

(2) what the total amount of (a) electricity and (b) heat produced by the combustion of tyres in the United Kingdom was in each year since 1992; and what percentage of the total renewable energy produced these represented. [105668]

Mr. Wilson

[holding answers 28 March 2003]: The available information is as follows:

Nigel Griffiths

Data for businesses with 15 or fewer employees is not available. However, published figures do cover the size-classes 0–9 employees and 10–19 employees.

At the start of 2001 there were about 3.5 million businesses with 0.9 employees and they employed a little over 6.5 million people. This represents nearly 95 per cent. of the UK business population and 29 per cent. of UK employment.

About 3.67 million businesses had 0–19 employees. They employed 8.1 million people. This represents nearly 98 per cent. of the UK business population and 36 per cent. of UK employment. The 10–19 size-class accounted for an extra 112,000 businesses and 1.57 million employment.