Vol. 408 No. 1
12 Mr. J. Higgins asked the Taoiseach if he will have the data for the monthly live register extended in order to include details of the various professional and job categories of those signing on; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
An analysis of the live register of the type described by the Deputy was carried out on a quarterly basis up to 1988. It was discontinued from the start of 1989 following a general review of the set of live register analyses being compiled by the Central Statistics Office.
The decision to revise the then set of live register analyses followed interdepartmental consultation with the Departments of the Taoiseach, Finance, Labour, Social Welfare and Industry and Commerce. It took account of the various shortcomings in the quality of the basic data on which these analyses were based as well as the resource situation within the Central Statistics Office and the local employment offices of the Department of Social Welfare.
The results of the annual labour force surveys provide a broad range of structural information on those at work and unemployed, including analyses by economic sector and occupation.
Would the Minister of State agree that everybody signing on each week at an employment exchange, which is a misnomer because really they are unemployment exchanges, must supply details of occupation and training and that this information should be produced on a monthly basis particularly now that we have the highest number ever out of work — last week it was 248,000—in order to give a proper up-to-date occupational profile of the country?
I would repudiate Deputy Higgins' statement that unemployment is at its highest. There are much higher figures on record from 1982 to 1987.
That is not true.
With regard to the question, the new system has been applied since 1989 and again provides much more information than the system that operated previously. The previous system was not accurate and that was proved to be so at the time.
Why does the Minister not give the data when he has it?
