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Mr. Faulds
asked the Secretary of State for Employment what were the quarterly unemployment figures for the last five years for the employment area including Smethwick, as compared with the national average unemployment figures for the same period.
Mr. Jim Lester
The following table gives the unemployment percentage rates for the Dudley and Sandwell travel-to-work area, which comprises the Smethwick, Cradley Heath, Dudley, Halesowen, Kingswinford, Oldbury, Stourbridge, Tipton, Wednesbury and West Bromwich employment office areas, and for Great Britain.
| Dudley and Sandwell travel-to-work area | Great Britain | |||
| March 1975 | … | … | 3·8 | 3·3 |
| June 1975 | … | … | 3·9 | 3·6 |
| September 1975 | … | … | 3·9 | 4·8 |
| December 1975 | … | … | 3·9 | 5·0 |
| March 1976 | … | … | 4·2 | 5·3 |
| June 1976 | … | … | 4·4 | 5·5 |
| September 1976 | … | … | 4·8 | 6·0 |
| December 1976 | … | … | ֵ | ֵ |
| March 1977 | … | … | 4·1 | 5·6 |
| June 1977 | … | … | 4·2 | 5·9 |
| September 1977 | … | … | 5·0 | 6·5 |
| December 1977 | … | … | 4·2 | 6·0 |
| March 1978 | … | … | 4·1 | 5·9 |
| June 1978 | … | … | 4·4 | 5·9 |
| September 1978 | … | … | 4·7 | 6·1 |
| December 1978 | … | … | 4·0 | 5·5 |
| March 1979 | … | … | 4·1 | 5·7 |
| June 1979 | … | … | 4·3 | 5·4 |
| September 1979 | … | … | 4·8 | 5·6 |
| December 1979* | … | … | 4·6 | 5·5 |
| March 1980* (provisional) | 5·0 | 6·0 | ||
| ֵ Not available. | ||||
| * The rates for December 1979 and March 1980 are not strictly comparable with those for the earlier dates because of the introduction of fortnightly attendance and payment of benefit. This had the effect of raising the monthly figures for all unemployed in Great Britain from October 1979 by about 20,000 or 1½ per cent. Estimates for local areas are not available. | ||||