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Utility Bills (Direct Debit)

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what protection is available for people against utility company levies that are added to their bills because they choose not to pay by direct debit. [178668]

Mr. Timms: The protection available to utility customers varies according to the industry concerned, each of which is subject to specific regulation. In respect of gas, electricity and telephone, levies are not applied to customers who choose to pay by standard credit,
 
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although direct debit customers ordinarily receive a discount because of the lower costs of administering their accounts. Gas and electricity prepayment meter customers will ordinarily pay a higher tariff than other customers because of the costs of the meters and the infrastructure that supports them, but some suppliers do not maintain differentials between their standard credit and prepayment tariffs. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is responsible for matters concerning the water industry.

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the practice of utility companies in imposing different levels of charges upon customers who pay for their services by direct debit and those who do not. [177659]

Mr. Timms: Direct debit is the most cost-efficient payment method for companies because, among other things, it guarantees payment and reduces invoicing costs. Utility companies therefore customarily offer a discount on their standard tariff for those paying by direct debit.
 
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TREASURY

Carers

Helen Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many carers of working age are (a) in full-time employment, (b) employed part-time and (c) not in paid work. [178198]

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.

Letter from Len Cook to Helen Jones, dated 15 June 2004:

As National Statistician and Registrar General for England and Wales I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking how many carers of working age are a) in full-time employment, b) employed part-time and c) not in paid work. (178198)

Information on economic activity of people in households providing unpaid care is available in table S026 in the 2001 Census National Report for England and Wales. This volume is available in the House of Commons Library and also on the National Statistics website through http://www.statistics.gov.uk/census2001/cn 87.asp. Figures derived from this table are shown in Table 1 below.

Census information on economic activity was coded for all people aged 16–74, rather than the usual 'working age' definition covering all males aged 16–64 and all females aged 16–59. Table S026 follows the convention of presenting results for this wider population.

Table 1: Economic activity and provision of unpaid care All people aged 16–74 in households, 2001 England and Wales

	All people	Providers of unpaid care
All people	37,049,262	4,776,934
Full-time employment(3)	17,535,321	1,852,762
Part-time employment(3)	5,143,701	847,002
Not in paid employment(3)	13,462,160	2,029,437
Economically active full-time students	908,080	47,733

⁽³⁾ Excluding economically active full-time students.
Source: S026, Census 2001 National report for England and Wales

Helen Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the cost to the Exchequer that would result if the unpaid care provided for older or disabled people by their relatives had to be paid for from public funds; and if he will make a statement. [178118]

Dawn Primarolo: The Government have made no estimate of the cost to the Exchequer that would result if the unpaid care provided for older or disabled people by their relatives had to be paid from public funds. The Royal Commission on Long Term Care included an assessment of the contribution made by carers. In response to the Commission's recommendations to increasingly offer flexible support services for carers, the Government introduced a specific carers grant that will provide over £600 million for carers by 2006.
 
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Unemployment (London)

Mr. Willetts: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people in London were unemployed in each year since 1997 according to the (a) claimant count and (b) survey definition; and what proportion this was of total unemployment in the UK on each definition. [177901]

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.

Letter from Len Cook to Mr. David Willetts, dated 15 June 2004:

As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about measures of unemployment. (177901)

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles statistics of unemployment from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) following International Labour Organisation definitions.

Table 1 overleaf gives estimates of the number of unemployed people in London as measured by the LFS and expresses them as a percentage of the United Kingdom totals for the 12 month periods ending February in 1997, and each year from 2000 to 2003. Comparable information is not available for 1998 and 1999. As with any statistical sample survey, estimates from the LFS are subject to sampling variability.

ONS also compiles statistics of those claiming Jobseeker's Allowance (ISA). Table 2 overleaf gives the annual average numbers of JSA claimants for the London region, also expressing them as a percentage of the United Kingdom totals, for each year from 1997 to 2003.

Table 1: Estimated number of unemployment peopleLondon, 12 months ending February in 1997, 2000, 2001,2002 and 2003

	Estimate	As percentage of UK total
1997	380,000	17.2
2000	258,000	15.3
2001	245,000	16.1
2002	240,000	16.5
2003	254,000	17.0

Source:
ONS Labour Force Survey




Table 2: Number of claimants of Jobseeker's Allowance(annual averages)London, 1997–2003

	Number	As percentage of UK total
1997	269,717	17.0
1998	225,367	16.7
1999	203,133	16.3
2000	174,458	16.0
2001	154,917	16.0
2002	166,000	17.5
2003	170,692	18.3

Source:
Jobcentre Plus Administrative system




 
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Job Creation (Stoke-on-Trent North)

Ms Walley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many new jobs have been created in Stoke-on-Trent, North in each year since 1997. [177632]

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.

Letter from Len Cook to Ms Joan Walley, dated 15 June 2004:

As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about jobs created in Stoke-on-Trent.

While statistics of new jobs created are not available explicitly, statistics from surveys enable comparisons to be made of net changes, in numbers of jobs, from year to year.

The following table, from the Annual Business Inquiry (a survey of businesses), shows the information requested, relating to jobs located in Stoke-on-Trent North, for each year from 1997 to 2002, the latest year available. The fall in the overall number of jobs almost all occurred in the manufacturing sector, and over the period 1997 to 2002 as a whole, there were increases in jobs in Stoke-on-Trent North in the sectors relating to: distribution, hotels and restaurants, transport and communication, and public administration, education and health.

The Labour Force Survey (a survey of households) shows a that the number of people of working age resident in the Stoke-on-Trent North Constituency who were in employment fell from 32,800 to 31,100 between the two 12 month periods ending respectively in February 1997 and February 2003, the latest period for which such information is available. However, the working age employment rate rose from 65.2% to 67.1%.

Total number of employees⁽⁴⁾ with workplace in Stoke-on-Trent North Parliamentary Constituency: 1997 and 2002

	Total
	Number of employees	Change on previous year(5)
1997	27,800	—
1998	29,400	1,600
1999	25,200	-4,200
2000	24,500	-700
2001	23,900	-700
2002	22,800	-1,000

⁽⁴⁾ Employee jobs only, not self-employed jobs
⁽⁵⁾ The change figures have been rounded to the nearest hundred separately from rounded levels for individual years
Source:
1997; Annual Employment Survey, rescaled 2002; Annual Business Inquiry (ABI)

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