asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce the number of persons employed full-time in the assembly of motor vehicles imported in a CKD condition on 1st January, 1965, 1970 and 1971; and the number who, he anticipates, will be similarly employed on 1st January, 1975.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Motor Assembly Industry.
43.
The available figures are for industrial workers employed in firms engaged in the motor vehicle assembly industry. This category includes, in addition to those actually engaged on assembly operations, those who are employed in the same industrial concerns on repairs and on activities ancillary to assembly. The figures which are as follows have been related as closely as possible to the dates mentioned in the question:
|
December, 1964 |
3,600 |
|
December, 1969 |
3,700 |
|
September, 1970 |
3,800 |
The special arrangements under which the Irish motor assembly industry operates are designed to preserve assembly here on a long-term basis, at least at the 1965 level, and the employment figure for 1975 should not be lower than the current level.
The Minister says the figures include those engaged on ancillary functions. Do they include salesmen, mechanics, and so on?
Mechanics, yes. I do not think the statistics I have include salesmen. I have referred to people employed in the same industrial concern on repairs, on activities ancillary to assembly, so that I assume it would not cover salesmen.
Would the Minister not agree mechanics could be employed outside the car assembly industry?
Yes.
Has that been taken into account?
Certainly what is not taken into account is mechanics all over the country who are not engaged in assembly.
Is the Minister sure he has given me the information for which I was looking?
I may not have given the Deputy the reply he wants, but I have given him the true information as I have it.
That is unnecessarily disparaging. What I asked was, is the Minister giving me the information I sought, which is the number of people employed specifically in car assembly. There might be an inflation in the sales side, on the repair side or similar sides of the car industry, and this would not meet the situation of, say, a redundant car assembly worker.
What I am saying is that the nearest the Central Statistics Office can go to supplying the direct information sought by the Deputy is to provide figures for the industrial workers employed in firms engaged in motor vehicle assembly and that is what I have given.