Orders of the Day — Unemployment

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 24 July 1978.

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Photo of Mr Harold Walker Mr Harold Walker , Doncaster 12:00, 24 July 1978

If the hon. Member for Brentford and Isleworth (Mr. Hayhoe) wishes to bandy about statistics and statistical methods, he should bear in mind that the official unemployment figure for February 1972 was more than 1½, million. It was the Conservative Government who then changed the figures, understandably and sensibly. I made no objection at the time, and I make none now. They changed the figures to delete those who were temporarily stopped, and that reduced the figure to below 1 million. But it is on record that in February 1972, the statistical method then in use—and it had been in use for many years—produced a figure in excess of 1½ million. If that statistical method were in use today, the present level of unemployment would be lower than it was in 1972.