Written question asked by Claire Curtis-Thomas (Labour) on Wednesday, 2 July 2003, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 8 July 2003. It was answered by Alan Johnson (Labour) on Tuesday, 8 July 2003 on behalf of the Department for Education and Skills.

Dept for Education and Skills

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what percentage of the workforce in the UK have at least level 2 skills; and how many adults lack basic literacy and numeracy skills. - Inc figures.

Answer: Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of the workforce in the UK have at least level 2 skills; and how many adults lack basic literacy and numeracy skills. [124217] Alan Johnson: The Labour Force Survey in autumn 2002 showed that 70.9 per cent. of the workforce in the UK were qualified to at least level 2. The International Adult Literacy Survey in 1996 estimated that in Great Britain1 there were 7.9 million adults aged 16-65 who lacked basic literacy skills (below level 1), equivalent to 22 per cent. of the population aged 16-65. The survey also showed that 18.6 million adults lacked basic numeracy skills (below level 1), equivalent to 51 per cent. of the population aged 16-65. 1 IALS data is not available for the UK

Secondary information