Call Centres (Hansard, 13 February 2004)

HC Deb 13 February 2004 vol 418 cc57-8W 57W

§ Mr. Hepburn
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) which call centres have relocated abroad from(a) the Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) Tyne and Wear, (d) the North East and (e) the UK in each year since 2000; and where they have relocated to; [153228]
(2) how many (a) call centres and (b) call centre-related jobs there are in (i) the Jarrow constituency, (ii) South Tyneside, (iii) Tyne and Wear, (iv) the North East and (v) the UK. [153229]

§ Ms Hewitt
The Government are well aware of the heightened interest and concerns expressed about the offshoring of UK service operations, including call centres, to countries such as India, China and Eastern Europe. My Department has commissioned research on the key factors contributing to the relative competitiveness of UK call centre operations. We are conducting this research because reliable figures on call centre employment, including jobs lost and created, do not currently exist, and there are conflicting predictions on future employment trends. However, we are still seeing growth in UK call centres; for example, in the North East region Hays Travel is creating 160 job opportunities at its call centres in Sunderland, Newcastle and Stockton.
58W

§ Jeff Ennis
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many(a) call centres and (b) call centre jobs there are in (i) South Yorkshire and (ii) Yorkshire and the Humber. [153720]

§ Ms Hewitt
The Government are well aware of the heightened interest and concerns expressed about the offshoring of UK service operations, including call centres, to countries such as India, China and Eastern Europe. My Department has commissioned research on the key factors contributing to the relative competitiveness of UK call centre operations. We are conducting this research because reliable figures on call centre employment, including jobs lost and created, do not currently exist, and there are conflicting predictions on future employment trends. However, we are still seeing growth in UK call centres; for example, in the Yorkshire and Humberside region Ventura is creating 300 new job opportunities at its call centre in Rotherham.

§ Mr. Hoyle
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many(a) call centres and (b) call centre jobs there are in (i) the North West and (ii) Lancashire. [154315]

§ Ms Hewitt
The Government are well aware of the heightened interest and concerns expressed about the offshoring of UK service operations, including call centres, to countries such as India, China and Eastern Europe. My Department has commissioned research on the key factors contributing to the relative competitiveness of UK call centre operations. We are conducing this research because reliable figures on call centre employment, including jobs lost and created, do not currently exist, and there are conflicting predictions on future employment trends. However, we are still seeing growth in UK call centres; for example, in the North West region Vertex is creating 1,000 new job opportunities at its call centres in Knowsley, Speke and Bolton.