asked the Secretary of State for Employment what steps he has taken to offset the current and notified redundancies in the Coventry area.

I am very much aware that the difficulties of the car and machine tool industries in particular are contributing to Coventry's unemployment problems. An improvement in the overall employment position in Coventry and elsewhere will depend upon a positive response from both sides of industry to the Government's economic policies. With its varied industrial base, Coventry is well placed to benefit from an expansion of economic activity which will lead to the creation of new jobs.