| Previous Section | Home Page |
EMPLOYMENT
Wages Councils
Mrs. Mahon : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he has come to a decision about the future of wages councils.
Southern Tourist Board
Mr. Atkinson : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what are the top 20 tourist attractions in the area covered by the Southern tourist board in numbers visiting ; and if he will indicate the numbers in each instance for the previous comparable year.
Mr. Nicholls : The English tourist board's annual survey of visits to attractions gives the following figures for the Southern tourist board area in 1987 and 1988 :
Number of visits
|1988 |1987
----------------------------------------------------------
Needles Pleasure Park |600,000|600,000
Beaulieu |537,750|513,481
Winchester Cathedral |400,000|400,000
Mary Rose Exhibition |370,360|362,105
Paultons Country Park |366,100|372,930
Queen Elizabeth Country Park |340,530|292,126
HMS Victory |332,238|326,051
HMS Warrior |300,000|<1>-
Marwell Zoo |280,405|248,052
Moors Valley Country Park |250,000|150,000
Osborne House |247,873|240,149
Birdworld and Underwater World |219,190|220,000
Natural World, Poole |181,700|170,522
Robin Hill Zoo and Adventure Park |180,000|180,000
Tank Museum, Bovington |175,469|169,746
Buckler's Hard Maritime Museum |164,795|170,180
Corfe Castle |161,754|149,279
Carisbrooke Castle |152,993|152,459
Poole Pottery |143,682|<1>-
Studland, Dorset |142,510|144,294
<1>Not known.
Bridging Allowances
Mr. Loyden : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many persons aged 16 and 17 years were in receipt of bridging allowance by region during April, May and June.
Mr. Nicholls : Figures for the number of young people in receipt of bridging allowance by region are provided in the table.
Column 420
Numbers in receipt of Bridging Allowance
Region<1> |April (13 April 1989)|May (11 May 1989) |June (8 June 1989)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
East Midlands and
Eastern |1,170 |1,075 |942
West Midlands |1,298 |1,202 |1,159
Wales |671 |569 |583
London and South
East |1,617 |1,427 |1,261
South West |630 |538 |436
Northern |1,021 |885 |868
Yorkshire and
Humberside |1,487 |1,376 |1,214
Scotland |1,912 |1,978 |2,115
North West |2,235 |1,934 |1,732
|---- |---- |----
Total |12,041 |10,984 |10,310
<1> The figures given relate to the Employment Department's Employment Service regions which do not equate to
the Standard Economic Regions.
Ms. Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment, by region, how many persons aged 16 and 17 years were in receipt of bridging allowance at the mid point of August, September and October.
Mr. Nicholls : Figures for the number of young people in receipt of bridging allowance by region for August and September are provided in the table. Figures for October are not yet available.
Numbers of receipt of bridging allowance
Region<1> |August (10 August 1989)|September (14 September
|1989)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
East Midlands and Eastern |922 |878
West Midlands |1,141 |960
Wales |630 |514
London and South East |1,400 |1,354
South West |464 |466
Northern |876 |640
Yorkshire and Humberside |1,276 |1,103
Scotland |1,701 |1,556
North West |1,851 |1,639
|---- |----
Total |10,261 |9,110
<1>The figures given relate to the Employment Department's Employment Service regions which do
not equate to the Standard Economic Regions.
Child Care
Mr. Leighton : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the Government's plans for work force child care.
Mr. Nicholls : The Government believe that child care is a matter for parental choice and that it is best left to employers and employees to decide which arrangements for combining work and family responsibilities best suit their individual needs and resources. The Government take every opportunity to encourage employers to adopt flexible working practices, including assistance with child care and the introduction of flexible working hours and family leave.
Workplace nurseries are one possible way of helping parents with child care, but may not always be the most practicable solution. Other possibilities include help with child care costs in the local home area and rearrangement of working hours and holidays to fit in with school hours and terms.
Column 421
The Government have also taken steps to encourage the growth of child care provision to assist working parents through the ministerial group on women's issues of which I am a member. The group recently announced a five-point plan designed to pave the way for the provision of child care to suit family needs. Work on this plan is progressing.Labour Statistics
Mr. Galloway : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment (1) how many men aged 45 to 65 years there are (a) in the United Kingdom, (b) in Scotland, (c) in full-time employment in the United Kingdom, (d) in full- time employment in Scotland, (e) in part-time employment in the United Kingdom, (f) in part-time employment in Scotland, (g) registered as unemployed in
Column 422
the United Kingdom and Scotland and (h) unemployed for one year, two years, three years and four or more years in the United Kingdom and Scotland ;(2) how many women aged 45 to 65 years there are (a) in the United Kingdom, (b) in Scotland, (c) in full-time employment in the United Kingdom, (d) in full-time employment in Scotland, (e) in part-time employment in the United Kingdom, (f) in part-time employment in Scotland, (g) registered as unemployed in the United Kingdom and Scotland and (h) unemployed for one year, two years, three years or four or more years in the United Kingdom and Scotland.
Mr. Nicholls : Estimates from the preliminary results of the 1988 labour force survey (LFS), of the number of men and women aged 45 to 64 years inclusive, as requested in (a) to (f) of the questions, are shown in table 1.
Column 421
Table 2
Unemployed men and women aged 45-64 years inclusive-United Kingdom and Scotland
13 July 1989
Thousands
Men Women
|United Kingdom |Scotland |United Kingdom |Scotland
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All unemployed aged 45-64 years inclusive |363,448 |42,890 |126,056 |16,116
Of which:
unemployed 52 weeks or less |150,551
unemployed over 52 weeks up to 104 weeks |46,113 |5,686 |18,755 |2,494
unemployed over 104 weeks up to 156 weeks |33,257 |3,863 |11,243 |1,492
unemployed over 156 weeks up to 208 weeks |27,805 |3,245 |9,468 |1,166
unemployed over 208 weeks |105,722 |14,191 |30,001 |3,574
<1>People claiming benefit at UBOs on the last day of the monthly count, who on that day were unemployed and willing to do any suitable work.
The number of men and women aged 45 to 64 years inclusive, who were unemployed and claiming benefit on 13 Jult 1989, as requested in (g) and (h) of the questions, are shown in table 2.
Table 2
Unemployed men and women aged 45-64 years inclusive-United Kingdom and Scotland
13 July 1989
Thousands
Men Women
|United Kingdom |Scotland |United Kingdom |Scotland
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All unemployed aged 45-64 years inclusive |363,448 |42,890 |126,056 |16,116
Of which:
unemployed 52 weeks or less |150,551
unemployed over 52 weeks up to 104 weeks |46,113 |5,686 |18,755 |2,494
unemployed over 104 weeks up to 156 weeks |33,257 |3,863 |11,243 |1,492
unemployed over 156 weeks up to 208 weeks |27,805 |3,245 |9,468 |1,166
unemployed over 208 weeks |105,722 |14,191 |30,001 |3,574
<1>People claiming benefit at UBOs on the last day of the monthly count, who on that day were unemployed and willing to do any suitable work.
Mr. Allen McKay : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many persons in the Barnsley metropolitan district there were in (a) full- time employment, (b) part-time employment and (c) temporary employment for each year from 1979 (i) by gender and (ii) as a percentage of all employees in (x) manufacturing industry and (y) the service sector industry.
Column 422
Mr. Nicholls [holding answer 20 October 1989] : The available employee estimates for the area are from the censuses of employment taken in September 1981, September 1984 and September 1987 and are given in the table.
Column 421
Employees in employment<1> in the Barnsley metropolitan district<2>
September 1981 September 1984 September 1987
Standard Industrial |Divisions of SIC |Number (thousand) |Per cent.<3> |Number (thousand) |Per cent.<3> |Number (thousand) |Per cent.<3>
Classification (SIC)
1980
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Manufacturing industries |2-4 |19.2 |24.5 |16.5 |22.6 |17.3 |25.7
Male full-time |10.1 |12.8 |8.9 |12.2 |9.2 |13.7
Male part-time |0.1 |0.2 |0.1 |0.1 |0.1 |0.1
Female full-time |6.9 |8.7 |6.0 |8.2 |6.5 |9.6
Female part-time |2.1 |2.7 |1.5 |2.1 |1.5 |2.2
Service industries |6-9 |34.2 |43.6 |35.4 |48.6 |37.7 |55.9
Male full-time |12.0 |15.2 |12.9 |17.8 |13.2 |19.5
Male part-time |1.4 |1.8 |1.4 |2.0 |2.5 |3.8
Female full-time |9.6 |12.2 |9.8 |13.5 |9.7 |14.4
Female part-time |11.3 |14.4 |11.2 |15.4 |12.3 |18.2
All industries and services |0-9 |78.5 |100.0 |72.8 |100.0 |67.5 |100.0
Male full-time |45.8 |58.3 |41.5 |57.0 |33.9 |50.3
Male part-time |1.6 |2.1 |1.6 |2.2 |2.8 |4.1
Female full-time |17.3 |22.1 |16.7 |22.9 |16.7 |24.8
Female part-time |13.7 |17.5 |13.0 |17.9 |14.0 |20.8
<1>Excludes the self-employed and members of Her Majesty's Forces: employees in temporary employment are included but are not separately identified in the census; part-time workers are defined as
those working not more than 30 hours a week.
<2>The district is defined in terms of ward boundaries as at 1981.
<3>Percentage of all industries and services total.
Mr. William Powell : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list in the Official Report all parliamentary constituencies in which the number of people out of work and claiming benefit declined between August 1984 and August 1989 by 70 per cent. or more, giving (a) the percentage decline, (b) the numbers claiming such benefit in August 1984 and (c) the numbers claiming such benefit in August of the current year.
Mr. Nicholls : Between August 1984 and August 1989 the number of unemployed claimants fell by 70 per cent. or
Column 424
more in 13 parliamentary constituencies. The table lists the constituencies concerned showing the numbers of unemployed claimants in August 1984 and 1989 along with the percentage changes. The figures are affected by the change in the compilation of the count in March 1986 to reduce over-recording and by the change of coverage from September 1988 resulting from changes in benefit regulations affecting people aged under 18 years. Direct comparisons cannot therefore be made.Column 423
Parliamentary constituencies Unemployed claimants Constituency name |August 1984 |August 1989 |Change |Percentage change ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Wantage |2,391 |601 |-1,790 |-74.86 Horsham |2,180 |572 |-1,608 |-73.76 Henley |2,020 |540 |-1,480 |-73.27 Shoreham |2,053 |550 |-1,503 |-73.21 Reading West |3,334 |894 |-2,440 |-73.19 South West Bedfordshire |3,766 |1,044 |-2,722 |-72.28 Mid Sussex |1,991 |553 |-1,438 |-72.23 Witney |2,646 |760 |-1,886 |-71.28 Milton Keynes |6,750 |1,956 |-4,794 |-71.02 North West Hampshire |2,361 |697 |-1,664 |-70.48 Newbury |2,650 |783 |-1,867 |-70.45 North West Surrey |2,356 |704 |-1,652 |-70.12 Corby |5,914 |1,771 |-4,143 |-70.05
Training and Enterprise Councils
Mr. Wood : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what progress is being made in establishing training and enterprise councils in the south-east ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Eggar : I have been very encouraged by the excellent response from employers in the south-east and throughout the country since we issued the invitation to form training and enterprise councils (TECs).
Some 40 groups of senior employers from around the country have applied for development funding of which six are from employer groups in the south- east.
Unfair Dismissal
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he has any proposals to bring forward relating to mandatory reinstatement of those employees found to be unfairly dismissed.
Column 424
Mr. Eggar : I have no such proposals.
YTS
Mr. Kirkwood : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what further steps he proposes to take to assist those persons aged 16 and 17 years who are still unable to secure places on the YTS scheme because no suitable places are available.
Mr. Nicholls : Current arrangements to ensure that the Government's guarantee is delivered have achieved their objective. Any individual cases of difficulty should be brought to the attention of the Training Agency which will take whatever steps are necessary to provide a place suited to a young person's needs and abilities.
Restart
Ms. Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment in the most recent 12-month period, how many claimants called for Restart interview have failed to
Column 425
attend their interview ; how many of those failing to attend are believed to have found work ; how many of those failing to attend have not found work ; how many failing to attend have had their benefit stopped and how many of these have successfully appealed against the benefit decision ; and how many failing to attend have subsequently re-registered as unemployed.Mr. Eggar : Between August 1988 and August 1989 a total of 3,033, 000 people were called in for Restart interview of which 316,400 were referred to unemployment benefit offices for failing to attend that interview. A total of 28,000 (8.8 per cent.) of these had their benefits or credits disallowed.
The other information requested is not available.
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment why it was decided to exclude from the questionnaires to be completed by those attending Restart interviews any specific questions regarding any university degree or professional qualification which the interviewee may have.
Mr. Eggar : Question 4 of the employment interview form collects details of the most commonly held qualifications. It is limited in order to keep the form to a reasonable length. Question 5 contains a space which enables interviewees to insert any qualifications held which are not already included on the form that will help them in their search for work. Degree or professional qualifications can be shown in this space.
Employment Training
Ms. Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what are the revised numbers of approved places allocated under employment training ; what are the area budgets for the programme ; and what are the allocations of supplementary grant, for each training agency area.
Mr. Nicholls : Up to 265,000 Employment Training (ET) places have been allocated for 1989-90. Following the annual round of recontracting, regions and areas are currently revising their detailed plans of numbers of places, of budgets, and of supplementary grants for ET in the light of these new contracts.
Health and Safety Executive
Mr. Andrew F. Bennett : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what proportion of those in the following Civil Service grades in his Department possess a formal professional management qualification : (a) members of the Health and Safety executive management board, (b) higher executive officers, (c) senior executive officers, (d) principals, (e) senior principals and (f) all grades above senior principal.
Mr. Eggar : Our records show that one of the 11 members of the Health and Safety Executive management board holds a professional management qualification. To supply the information regarding administration group grades for higher executive officer and above would entail disproportionate cost.
Column 426
Hazardous Substances
Mr. Bermingham : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what steps are being taken to monitor and enforce the operation of the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Nicholls : The Health and Safety Executive and local authorities will enforce the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations and monitor the implementation through their normal inspection arrangements. There will be an evaluation of the impact of the regulations in 1991.
Toxic Substances
Mr. Hardy : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what toxic substances were contained in a shipment of copper hydroxide sludge received by Wath Recycling Company from the FMC Corporation of the United States of America ; and to what health risks those (a) employed in this plant and (b) in the neighbouring communities were exposed.
Mr. Nicholls [holding answer 19 October 1989] : The Health and Safety Executive's analysis of the copper hydroxide sludge showed that Xylene, 2, 3,--dihydro-2, 2--dimethyl benzofuran, and chlorinated phenolic compounds were present.
Xylene is a skin and eye irritant, which can affect the liver and cause loss of consciousness when concentrations are high. It is not a carcinogen. No documented toxicological data is available for 2, 3--Dihydro--2, 2-- dimethyl benzofuran but related substances are known to be either carcinogenic to animals and possibly humans or toxic. Chlorinated phenolic compounds are toxic and possibly carcinogenic. The Health and Safety Executive considered that whilst the bulk stack of sludge was left undisturbed there was unlikely to be any significant risk to people on or off site. This risk would increase during the process of repacking, but Health and Safety Executive inspectors ensured that suitable precautions were taken by both employees and the neighbouring communities.
DEFENCE
Department-Industry Links
17. Mr. John Greenway : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what measures his Department undertakes for staff interchanges with industry.
Mr. Alan Clark : We attach considerable importance to the benefits of staff interchages with industry and this is underscored by our very successful secondment programme which is the largest in the Civil Service-- in 1988 we achieved our best ever total of 221 secondments to and from industry. Additionally, we have also recently established seven non- executive directorships for senior staff with non-defence related companies.
Low Flying
18. Mr. Henderson : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with his NATO allies concerning possible height restrictions on low flying.
Column 427
22. Mr. Steinberg : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with his NATO allies concerning possible height restrictions on low flying.
30. Mr. Norman Hogg : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with his NATO allies concerning possible height restrictions on low flying.
96. Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with his NATO allies concerning possible height restrictions on low flying.
Mr. Neubert : My right hon. Friend has had discussions with those NATO allies involved about a package of measures designed to reduce the impact of low-flying training in the Federal Republic of Germany. The outcome of these discussions, which concerned among other subjects the height at which training was undertaken, was reported to the Bundestag by the Federal German Minister of Defence, Dr. Stoltenberg, on 29 September 1989 and a translation of this report has been placed in the Library.
87. Mr. Kennedy : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he has any plans to amend the rules governing low-flying military activity in the United Kingdom ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Neubert : There are no plans to alter the fundamental structure of the United Kingdom low-flying system which has worked well since its inception in 1979.
Frigates
19. Mr. Douglas : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the progress made in ordering the latest batch of type 23 frigates.
Mr. Neubert : We are currently evaluating and clarifying tenders received from Yarrow Shipbuilders Ltd., Swan Hunter Shipbuilders Ltd. and VSEL/Cammell Laird for the construction of up to four type 23 frigates. I would hope to announce the outcome of this competition by the end of the year.
NATO Secretary General
20. Mr. Menzies Campbell : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he next intends to meet the Secretary General of NATO ; and what subjects he proposes to discuss with him.
Mr. Tom King : I hope to meet Dr. Woerner this evening at the nuclear planning group meeting in Portugal. We will discuss a range of matters concerning nuclear issues.
Troop Numbers
21. Mr. Pike : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the effect on the British Army of the proposals tabled in Vienna for ceilings on troop numbers.
Mr. King : I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave earlier to the hon. Member for Makerfield (Mr. McCartney).
United States Defence Secretary
23. Mr. Mullin : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he last met his United States counterpart ; and what issues were discussed.
Column 428
29. Mr. Buckley : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he last met his United States counterpart ; and what issues were discussed.
95. Ms. Armstrong : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he last met his United States counterpart ; and what issues were discussed.
10. Mr. Galbraith : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he last met his United States counterpart ; and what issues were discussed.
Mr. Tom King : I hope to meet Mr. Cheney for the first time later today, at the meeting of the nuclear planning group in Portugal. We will be discussing a wide range of matters of mutual interest, both at the NPG and during Mr. Cheney's subsequent visit to the United Kingdom.
NATO (Southern Flank)
24. Mr. David Evans : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent discussions have taken place within NATO regarding its southern flank ; and what proposals are currently being considered.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : Matters affecting the southern flank are kept under constant review within NATO.
Defence Studies
Mr. Butler : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether non- provocative defence is studied at the service colleges.
46. Mr. Knapman : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether non-provocative defence is studied at the service colleges.
38. Mr. Fishburn : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much time is allocated in the service colleges to defence studies.
25. Mr. Amess : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence to what extent NATO's strategy of flexible response is studied at the service colleges.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : I assume that my hon. Friends are referring to the Royal College of Defence Studies, the Joint Service Defence College and the three single-service staff colleges. Their syllabuses are concerned with matters relating to defence, including the strategic political, economic and social factors that bear upon it. It is appropriate that considerable emphasis is placed upon study of the United Kingdom's and NATO's defence policies, including the strategy of flexible response which underpins those policies, but students are also given an insight into alternative policies and strategies. There is insufficient time, however, for the detailed study of specific alternatives such as so-called non- provocative defence.
Conventional Forces (Limitation)
26. Mr. Gregory : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what part his Department is playing in the CFL negotiations.
33. Mr. David Martin : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what part his Department is playing in the CFL negotiations.
76. Mr. Burt : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what part his Department is playing in the conventional forces limitation negotiations.
Column 429
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The Ministry of Defence is playing a full part in the United Kingdom's contribution to the conventional armed forces in Europe talks now under way in Vienna.
Demography
27. Mr. McWilliam : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is his latest assessment of the effects of demographic changes upon Her Majesty's Government's defence policy.
65. Mr. Battle : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is his latest assessment of the effects of demographic changes upon Her Majesty's Government's defence policy.
Mr. Neubert : I have nothing further to add to the answer I gave earlier today to the hon. Members for Manchester, Central (Mr. Litherland) and for Edinburgh, South (Mr. Griffiths).
WE177 Bomb
28. Mr. Mans : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress has been made in his plans for modernising the Royal Air Force's WE177.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The studies into a number of options for the possible replacement of the WE177 free-fall bomb are continuing. It is not yet possible to forecast when a decision may be taken.
32. Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what consultations he has had with the West German Government about the possible replacement of the WE177 free-fall nuclear bomb.
61. Mr. Doran : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what consultations he has had with the West German Government about the possible replacement of the WE177 free-fall nuclear bomb.
98. Mr. Harry Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what consultations he has had with the West German Government about the possible replacement of the WE177 free-fall nuclear bomb.
Women Personnel
31. Mrs. Maureen Hicks : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how his Department intends increasing the role of women in the services.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The services are implementing a number of proposals, and are considering others, to increase significantly the range of duties that may be undertaken by women, subject to the Government's policy of not employing them in direct combat roles.
Defence Exports
34. Mr. Gerald Bowden : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many jobs are currently directly and indirectly supported by defence exports.
Mr. Alan Clarke : I refer my hon. Friend to the "Statement on the Defence Estimates 1989" (Cm. 675-II, volume 2, table 6.8).
Column 430
Combat Aircraft
35. Mr. Alan W. Williams : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the effect on the Royal Air Force of the proposals tabled in Vienna for ceilings on numbers of combat aircraft.
| Next Section
| Home Page |