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100. Mr. Gerald Bowden : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he has any plans to meet the chairmen of the regional tourism boards to discuss the tourism review ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Lee : I hope to meet the chairmen of the regional tourist boards very shortly.

Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will publish in the Official Report , the total Government expenditure on the British Tourist Authority and each of the national tourist boards for each year from 1978 to the latest available year at current and constant 1988 prices.


Column 162

Mr. Lee : Responsibility for the Scottish, Wales and Northern Ireland tourist boards lies with their respective Secretaries of State. The figures requested for the British Tourist Authority and the English tourist board (including the payments of grants under section 4 of the Development of Tourism Act 1969, administered by the English tourist board) are :


Current prices                                                                       

£ million                                                                            

                 |BTA             |ETB             |Section 4 scheme                 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1978-79          |11.0            |5.0             |1.3                              

1979-80          |12.8            |6.1             |4.2                              

1980-81          |14.2            |7.3             |4.2                              

1981-82          |16.2            |8.7             |4.0                              

1982-83          |18.1            |10.5            |4.5                              

1983-84          |17.0            |8.6             |6.3                              

1984-85          |17.3            |9.2             |8.4                              

1985-86          |17.1            |8.8             |7.9                              

1986-87          |20.4            |10.3            |9.5                              

1987-88          |22.0            |11.3            |12.0                             

1988-89          |23.7            |12.6            |13.2                             


Constant 1988 prices                                                                 

£ million                                                                            

                 |BTA             |ETB             |Section 4 scheme                 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1978-79          |24.3            |11.0            |3.0                              

1979-80          |24.7            |11.8            |8.1                              

1980-81          |22.9            |11.8            |6.8                              

1981-82          |23.4            |12.6            |5.8                              

1982-83          |24.3            |14.1            |6.0                              

1983-84          |21.7            |11.0            |8.1                              

1984-85          |21.1            |11.2            |10.3                             

1985-86          |19.8            |10.2            |9.1                              

1986-87          |22.8            |11.5            |10.6                             

1987-88          |23.4            |12.0            |12.8                             

1988-89          |23.7            |12.6            |13.2                             

Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will publish in the Official Report the total planned expenditure on the British Tourist Authority and each of the national tourist boards for 1989- 90, 1990-91, and 1991-92, respectively.

Mr. Lee : Responsibility for the Scottish, Wales and Northern Ireland tourist boards lies with their respective Secretaries of State.

In 1989-90, planned expenditure on grant-in-aid to the British Tourist Authority and to the English tourist board is £24.8 million and £13.2 million respectively. In addition, £10 million will be available to fulfil commitments made under the section 4 scheme prior to its suspension.

Expenditure plans for following years will be determined under public expenditure survey arrangements in the normal way.

TVEI

39. Mr. Haselhurst : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the progress of the technical and vocational education initiative.

Mr. Cope : The technical and vocational education initiative is making excellent progress. TVEI is helping to prepare young people for working life by ensuring that their education is directly relevant to the world of work. All education authorities in Great Britain are now taking


Column 163

part in TVEI : by September this year, some two thirds of them will have moved from the pilot phase to extending TVEI to all schools and colleges.

Labour Costs

40. Mr. Tim Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what has been the effect of changes in unit labour costs in manufacturing over the last year on employment.

Mr. Lee : Over the last year average earnings in manufacturing have risen by about 9 per cent., but the 5 per cent. increase in productivity has kept the increase in unit wage costs over the period to May 1989 down to 3 per cent. In the year to May 1989, employees in employment in manufacturing fell by 37,000.

There are many factors that affect employment over a short period of time and it is not possible to give an estimate of the effects of unit wage costs. However, if manufacturing in this country is to remain competitive it is vital that industry keeps unit wage costs under control.

Disabled People (Legislation)

43. Ms. Quin : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment whether he has received the report recently published by the Royal Association for Disability and Rehabilitation (RADAR), and the Southwark law project on the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1944 ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Lee : I have received the report and noted the contents. The conclusions reached in it are being considered in the internal review of services which the Department provides to support the employment and training of people with disabilities.

61. Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many inspections were carried out during the last financial year of employers' premises, to check that obligations under the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1944 were being met ; and how many of these revealed infringements.

63. Mr. Alfred Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many inspections were carried out during the last financial year of employers' premises, to check that obligations under the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1944 were being met ; and how many of these revealed infringements.

Mr. Lee : In the year from April 1988 to April 1989 quota enforcement officers carried out 2,050 inspections of employers records under the terms of the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1944. The number of inspections revealing infringements was 632. The inspections were targeted particularly on employers known not to hold a permit to recruit people not registered as disabled, and thus did not cover a representative cross section. The employers concerned undertook in future to comply fully with their obligations under the Act.

120. Mr. Hannam : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what aspects of the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1944 are being considered in his Department's internal review of employment assistance to disabled adults ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Lee : The review is considering all aspects of my Department's services for people with disabilities which


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are provided under the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1944. These include the quota scheme, sheltered employment for people with severe disabilities, and the arrangements at national and local level for advising the Secretary of State on matters concerning the employment and training of people with disabilities. It is proposed to consult widely about the conclusions of the review.

Minimum Wages

46. Mr. Cryer : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many prosecutions for breaches of minimum wages legislation were undertaken in 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988 and 1989 to date ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Nicholls : The numbers of prosecutions for all offences under wages council legislation for the years requested are as follows :


        |Number       

----------------------

1985    |2            

1986    |3            

1987    |8            

1988    |11           

<1>1989 |2            

<1>To date.           

The policy of the wages inspectorate under all Governments has been to seek compliance with the law by advice and persuasion and to consider prosecution only where an offence is deliberate or repeated.

Engineering

47. Mr. Cousins : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what are the average hours of full-time workers in the engineering industry including overtime.

Mr. Lee : The latest available information, for April 1988, is published in table X2, part B of the 1988 new earnings survey report. A copy of the report is in the Library.

Mr. Cousins : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what are the average numbers of hours of work of full-time employees in the engineering industry in each year since 1980.

Mr. Nicholls : Estimates compiled from the new earnings survey are provided in the table. Data on a consistent industry classification basis are not available prior to 1982.


Average total     

weekly hours<1>   

Engineering       

industry<2>-Great 

Britain           

April |Hours      

------------------

1982  |40.9       

1983  |41.1       

1984  |41.6       

1985  |41.8       

1986  |41.9       

1987  |41.9       

1988  |42.3       

<1> Full time     

employees on      

adult rates of    

pay whose         

earnings in the   

survey week were  

not affected by   

absence. However, 

1982 relates to   

males aged 21 and 

over and females  

aged 18 and over. 

<2> Covers        

Standard          

Industrial        

Classification (  

1980) Classes 32 (

Mechanical        

Engineering), 33 (

Manufacture of    

Office Equipment  

and Data          

Processing        

Equipment), 34 (  

Electrical and    

Electronic        

Engineering) and  

37 (Instrument    

Engineering).     


Column 165

Dock Workers

50. Mr. Janman : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what representations he has received about the port-by-port negotiations between dock workers and the port employers ; and if he will make a statement.

84. Mr. Michael Brown : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment whether he has received any representations about the need for port-by-port negotiations between the dock workers and their employers ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Nicholls : My right hon. Friend has received no representations about port-by-port negotiations between former registered dock workers and their employers. Following the abolition of the restrictions of the dock labour scheme, employers and employees must decide what form of negotiations about the terms and conditions of 9, 200 former registered dock workers meets the needs of the ports concerned.

The Government note that terms and conditions of 30,000 other workers in scheme and non-scheme ports are the product of successful local negotiations between employers and employees, and that port employers have offered similar talks to former registered dock workers. The Government believe that the offer should be taken up, in the interests of the dock workers themselves and the ports on which their jobs depend.

Labour Market

52. Mr. David Shaw : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what steps he is taking to improve the labour market ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Nicholls : We have taken positive steps to improve the labour market by developing an effective range of employment and training measures, improving industrial relations, promoting enterprise in small firms and self-employment and removing barriers to employment. These measures have made a major contribution to the massive improvement in the employment situation in the last three years and will be vigorously pursued in the future.

Picketing

55. Mr. Boswell : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he has any plans to amend the code on picketing ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Nicholls : My right hon. Friend has no current plans to amend the statutory code of practice on picketing.

Skill Shortages

57. Mr. Moss : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what measures he is taking to reduce skill shortages ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Nicholls : The Government are continuing to encourage employers to define and tackle their own skill needs through the introduction of training and enterprise councils and business growth training. The Government are also helping young people and the unemployed to learn new skills through YTS and employment training.


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Enterprise Allowance

59. Mr. Patrick Thompson : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what assessment he has made of the extent to which the enterprise allowance scheme provides value for money in creating new jobs ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Cope : Both the IBBs efficiency unit and the National Audit Office have in recent reports endorsed the scheme as a

value-for-money employment measure. The net cost per person who leaves the unemployed register is £1,846. This figure takes into account flow backs in the form of tax, national insurance and savings in benefit and the effects of deadweight and displacement, but excludes administration costs. Latest survey evidence shows that 65 per cent. of those who complete a full year on the scheme are still trading two years after the allowance has ended, and that for every 100 businesses continuing at this three year point, 114 additional jobs have been created.

103. Mr. Bright : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the progress of the enterprise allowance scheme.

Mr. Nicholls : A total of 446,000 people have started their own business under the enterprise allowance scheme since it began in 1982. Some 84,000 people are currently in receipt of the allowance.

Social Charter

66. Mr. Marland : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement setting out his reasons for opposition to the proposed European social charter.

Mr. Cope : I refer my hon. Friend to my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Warrington, South (Mr. Butler) on Tuesday 20 June 1989 at column 120.

116. Mr. Curry : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what indications he received of the intentions of the French presidency to proceed with the social charter following the EC Employment Ministers meeting in Auxerre; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Cope : I attended the informal meeting of EC Employment Ministers at Auxerre on 10 July and agreed that the United Kingdom would take part in the working group which the French presidency now intend to set up to consider a social charter. Our view remains that the provisional draft charter proposed by the European Commission is unnecessary and unacceptable and that it will do nothing to contribute to job creation which was agreed to be the top social priority at the European Council in Madrid last month. We will be making clear in our discussions during the French presidency the problems and disadvantages we see in the Commission's proposed charter. We will continue to stress the very important point agreed in Madrid that national legislation and voluntary agreements have a legitimate role in achieving the Community's social dimension, and not everything has to be the subject of directives from the European Community.


Column 167

ACAS

69. Mr. Kirkhope : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many industrial disputes have been referred to the Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Nicholls : Information on the number and types of conciliation cases dealt with by the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service is published in its annual report. In 1988 the service received a total of 1,163 requests for conciliation. In over 80 per cent. of the cases no industrial action took place. It is entirely for the parties concerned to decide whether they wish to seek the assistance of ACAS in settling disputes.

Part-time Workers

71. Mr. Rooker : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on action taken to improve the working conditions and employment protection of part-time workers in the past decade.

Mr. Nicholls : The Government believe that the interests of all workers, including part-timers, are best served by their policy since 1979 of reducing barriers to economic efficiency.

Industrial Training Boards

73. Mr. Tony Lloyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment with which industrial training boards he has still to agree a levy for the financial year 1989-90.

Mr. Nicholls : My right hon. Friend has agreed proposals from six industry training boards to collect levy from their industries in the financial year 1989-90. No further levy proposals are expected for this period.

Trade Union Immunities

76. Mr. Day : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what representations he has received seeking the restoration of trade union immunities as they existed prior to the passing of the Employment Act 1981 ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Nicholls : Representations seeking the repeal of the measures taken to reform industrial relations and trade union law since 1979 are made to my right hon. Friend from time to time, from various sources. These reforms have, however, helped to correct imbalances of power between unions and employers, and unions and their own members, and contributed significantly to the important changes of attitude which have made the improvement in our industrial relations record possible.

Hairdressing (Training)

78. Sir John Hunt : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the present arrangements in respect of training schemes within the hairdressing industry.

Mr. Cope : The Government actively support structured training leading to vocational qualifications and welcomes the efforts made in the last few years by the hairdressing industry to improve its training arrangements. The


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industry, represented by the hairdressing training board, has developed a national scheme for new entrants to the industry and has recently received approval from the National Council for Vocational Qualifications for its new qualification in hairdressing.

Tourism (Japan)

80. Mr. Butterfill : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he has any plans to meet the chairman of the British Tourist Authority to discuss the promotion of the British tourism and leisure industry in Japan ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Lee : I have recently returned from Japan where I led a delegation of senior representatives of the British tourism, travel, and retail industries including representatives of the BTA. The aim was to convince the Japanese of our interest in their market and to bring back practical advice to the British tourism industry on how to encourage more Japanese visitors to Britain. I am convinced that the Japanese market offers great potential and I will be considering with the chairman of the British Tourist Authority how best to carry forward the delegation's recommendations.

Secondary Industrial Action

86. Mr. John Marshall : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he has any plans to meet the trade union commissioner to discuss secondary picketing and secondary action ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Nicholls : My right hon. Friend has no such plans to meet the Commissioner for the Rights of Trade Union Members.

102. Mr. Nicholas Baker : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what representations he has received seeking the repeal of current laws relating to secondary picketing and secondary action ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Nicholls : Representations on the proposals for changes to industrial relations law put forward in the Green Paper "Removing Barriers to Employment" are currently being considered. The proposal to make it unlawful to induce industrial action by workers of an employer not party to a trade dispute, except in the case of lawful picketing, was supported by a majority of those commenting on it.

TUC

95. Mr. Ward : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he has any plans to meet the general secretary of the Trades Union Congress to discuss the current industrial relations situation.

Mr. Nicholls : My right hon. Friend has no current plans for such a meeting.

Standards Programme

96. Mr. Malcolm Bruce : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what are the implementation procedures for the standards programmes launched by his Department on 22 June.

Mr. Nicholls : The publication "Standards significant to health and safety at work", launched by the Health and


Column 169

Safety Executive on 22 June 1989, updates a similar publication first produced in 1983. It is a list, published for information, of those standards to which frequent reference is made by HSE in its advisory and enforcement work.

Enterprise Agencies

97. Mr. Hague : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many enterprise agencies are operating in the United Kingdom ; how much they received from his Department in 1988 ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Cope : We know of 433 local enterprise agencies operating in the United Kingdom. Of these, 394 are approved under statutory provisions which allow for tax relief on donations to them. In 1988-89 just over £2.5 million was also paid out in grant aid by my Department to approved local enterprise agencies in England.

Training Agencies

101. Mr. Corbyn : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what action his Department is taking to monitor the work of private training agencies contracted to work for his Department.

Mr. Cope : The Employment Department, through the Training Agency, has in place a comprehensive strategy for the monitoring and quality development of training delivered through contracts with other organisations.

Employment training and YTS contractors are examined rigorously to establish whether they should become approved training organisations. Once approved, contractors continue to be visited regularly by Training Agency staff and training standards advisory service inspectors to review the performance and quality of training, and financial and health and safety arrangements. The Training Agency also carries out an annual review of all contracts to draw together all available information before deciding the size and scope of any future contracts.

Training providers who contract to deliver seminars and workshops under business growth training are monitored by Training Agency staff against expenditure and performance ; the quality of training is reviewed at periodic meetings with contractors, and by follow-up questioning of trainees.


Column 170

Health and Safety

108. Mr. Menzies Campbell : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment whether he has any plans to extend the Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Nicholls : My right hon. Friend has no such plans. The Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act 1974 already applies to the control of virtually all workplace risks in Great Britain. It also applies to offshore installations and to certain other activities within territorial waters and designated areas of the continental shelf. The Act places duties on all people concerned with work, including employers, employees and the self- employed, to ensure the health and safety of people at work and of others who may be affected by working activities.

Mr. Cousins : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many accidents, fatalities and diseases at work reported to the Health and Safety Executive occurred in retail in each year since 1981.

Mr. Nicholls : The available information for the retail industry, based on reports to the local authorities and to the Health and Safety Executive, is as follows :


                                         Severity of injury                                                     

Employment Status     |Year<2>          |Fatal            |Major            |Over three days                    

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Employees             |1986-87          |4                |851              |5,291                              

                      |<1>1987-88       |2                |831              |6,000                              

                                                                                                                

Self-employed         |1986-87          |1                |2                |6                                  

                      |<1>1987-88       |1                |5                |10                                 

                                                                                                                

Members of the public |1986-87          |7                |499              |n/a                                

                      |<1>1987-88       |4                |493              |n/a                                

<1> Provisional                                                                                                 

<2> For the year commencing 1 April                                                                             

n/a Not available                                                                                               

Mr. Cousins : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will publish a table showing accidents at work, fatalities at work, and diseases at work reported to the Health and Safety Executive in each year since 1980 by standard region.

Mr. Nicholls : This information is not held by standard region and could be provided in this form only at disproportionate cost. Available information broken down by Health and Safety Executive areas is as follows :


Column 169


Fatal injuries<3> to employees at work reported to HSE's factory and agricultural inspectorates<5>                                                                             

Health and Safety              |1981             |1982             |1983             |1984             |1985             |1986-87<1>       |1987-88<1><6>                      

executive area                                                                                                                                                                 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

South West                     |8                |15               |16               |16               |12               |17               |12                                 

South                          |11               |7                |11               |9                |11               |11               |14                                 

South East                     |17               |17               |17               |19               |21               |14               |23                                 

Greater London                 |29               |33               |32               |29               |34               |26               |32                                 

East Anglia                    |8                |11               |13               |14               |16               |13               |10                                 

Northern Home Counties         |5                |9                |9                |14               |10               |10               |8                                  

East Midlands                  |13               |14               |9                |8                |12               |11               |8                                  

West Midlands                  |13               |16               |18               |11               |11               |7                |11                                 

Wales                          |22               |23               |13               |23               |19               |21               |27                                 

Marches                        |11               |11               |12               |11               |7                |6                |5                                  

North Midlands                 |14               |16               |16               |11               |12               |8                |8                                  

South Yorkshire and Humberside |11               |14               |15               |14               |13               |15               |11                                 

West and North Yorkshire       |19               |18               |21               |19               |17               |19               |11                                 

Greater Manchester             |13               |13               |11               |14               |14               |13               |10                                 

Merseyside                     |9                |9                |11               |16               |16               |9                |12                                 

North West                     |10               |13               |17               |7                |4                |8                |10                                 

North East                     |18               |21               |9                |17               |15               |15               |11                                 

Scotland East                  |19               |21               |29               |22               |18               |22               |15                                 

Scotland West                  |28               |27               |12               |17               |13               |8                |18                                 


All injuries<4> to employees at work reported to HSE factory and                    

agricultural inspectorates<5>                                                       

Health and Safety             |1986-87<1>       |1987-88<4><6>                      

Executive Area                                                                      

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

South West                    |6,781            |6,486                              

South                         |6,472            |6,556                              

South East                    |5,889            |5,642                              

Greater London                |13,918           |12,949                             

East Anglia                   |5,637            |6,064                              

Northern Home Counties        |4,318            |4,409                              

East Midlands                 |4,862            |4,987                              

West Midlands                 |7,728            |7,536                              

Wales                         |8,539            |8,203                              

Marches                       |5,834            |5,725                              

North Midlands                |8,645            |7,891                              

South Yorksire and Humberside |8,376            |8,104                              

West and North Yorkshire      |9,596            |9,022                              

Greater Manchester            |8,804            |8,461                              

Merseyside                    |9,086            |7,959                              

North West                    |6,561            |6,643                              

North East                    |11,082           |10,723                             

Scotland East                 |7,734            |8,518                              

Scotland West                 |7,132            |7,285                              

<1> Data for the year beginning 1 April.                                            

<2> From 1981 to 1985 the figures include some injuries to the self employed and    

from 1981 to 1983 they may also include some injuries to members of the public.     

<3> Fatalities to employees reported to HSE's Factory and Agricultural              

Inspectorates under, and as defined in, the Notification of Accidents and Dangerous 

Occurrences Regulations, 1980 for the years 1981 to 1985 and the Reporting of       

Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations, 1985 since 1 April 1986.  

<4> Includes major injuries and over three day absences reported directly to        

enforcing authorities under RIDDOR.                                                 

<5> Figures reported to other enforcing authorities are not available by HSE area.  

<6> Provisional.                                                                    


Ill-health notifications reported to HSE's Factory and Agricultural                  

Inspectorates<2>                                                                     

Health and Safety              |1986-87<1>       |1987-88<1><3>                      

Executive Area                                                                       

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

South West                     |23               |23                                 

South                          |14               |12                                 

South East                     |25               |15                                 

Greater London                 |40               |15                                 

East Anglia                    |5                |4                                  

Northern Home Counties         |13               |3                                  

East Midlands                  |10               |8                                  

West Midlands                  |29               |14                                 

Wales                          |18               |9                                  

Marches                        |9                |18                                 

North Midlands                 |11               |9                                  

South Yorkshire and Humberside |14               |14                                 

West and North Yorkshire       |12               |11                                 

Greater Manchester             |15               |10                                 

Merseyside                     |12               |14                                 

North West                     |11               |14                                 

North East                     |16               |12                                 

Scotland East                  |8                |4                                  

Scotland West                  |5                |49                                 

<1>Data for the year beginning 1 April.                                              

<2>Figures reported to other enforcing authorities are not available by HSE area.    

<3>Provisional.                                                                      

Mr. Cousins : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will take steps to make it compulsory for accidents in shops to be reported to the Health and Safety Executive.


Column 172

Mr. Nicholls : The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1985 already require that accidents which arise out of or in connection with, work activities covered by the Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act 1974 are reported to the relevant enforcing authority. In the case of accidents in shops this is normally the local authority.

Training Schemes

109. Mr. Geraint Howells : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment whether he has any plans to review his Department's schemes for the unemployed ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Lee : The Government's policies have produced a business climate in which nearly 3 million new jobs have been created over the last six years. As a result, there are now more people in work in this country than ever before in our history. My Department runs a wide range of programmes which have assisted unemployed people to secure those jobs and share in this new prosperity. These measures are kept under regular review to ensure that they continue successfully and cost effectively to help unemployed people back into work.

French Employment Minister

111. Dame Jill Knight : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on his meeting with the French Employment Minister on 4 July in London ; and what matters were discussed.

Mr. Cope : M. Soisson visited London on 4 July at the invitation of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State. We held a constructive meeting covering a wide range of issues, in particular plans for the current French presidency of the European Commission.

Co-operative Development Agency

112. Mr. Turner : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment when he will be announcing his plans for the future of the Co-operative Development Agency.

Mr. Cope : I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Lewisham, West (Mr. Maples) on 13 July at columns 581 -82.

115. Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what plans he has to develop and encourage the work currently undertaken by the Co-operative Development Agency.

Mr. Cope : The Co-operative Development Agency has done good work in supporting and advising co-operatives but much of this is now carried out by other support bodies. Consequently, as I announced in a reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Lewisham, West (Mr. Maples) on 13 July, the Government have decided not to extend the life of the CDA when the ceiling of grant available to support it is reached. The agency has also played a role in co-ordinating and representing the interests of the co-operative movement as


Column 173

a whole. We believe that it is for co- operative organisations themselves to determine their future needs and arrangements in this respect.


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