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Mr. Spearing
asked the Secretary of State for Industry how many bicycles were produced in the United Kingdom in 1978 and 1979; and what approximate proportion by value, of the components was manufactured in the United Kingdom and imported from abroad.
Mr. David Mitchell
The number of bicycles produced is not known, but the number sold by United Kingdom manufacturers, which is believed to be about the same, amounted to 2 million in 1978, and 1·3 million in the first nine months of 1979. Information on the proportion of the components manufactured in the United Kingdom is not available.
| 1974–75 | 1975–76 | 1976–77 | 1977–78 | 1978–79 | ||
| External finance* (£ million) | … | 344 | 727 | 1,016 | 876 | 766 |
| Number of employees (000s) | … | 228 | 210 | 208 | 197 | 186 |
| Finance per employee (£) | … | 1,509 | 3,462 | 4,885 | 4,447 | 4,118 |
| * This includes in addition to direct Government advances, foreign and short term borrowing, nearly all of which is guaranteed by the Government. | ||||||