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Youth Training
Mrs. Bridget Prentice : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what percentage of young people graduating from youth training schemes in (a) the London borough of Lewisham and (b) south-east London secured full- time permanent employment related to their training within (i) six months and (ii) one year of the completion of their course, in the latest period for which figures are available.
Mr. McLoughlin : The information requested is not available.
Mr. Denham : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many eligible young people in Hampshire have currently been unable to obtain a place on a youth training scheme.
Mr. McLoughlin [holding answer 21 January 1993] : Information on the total number of young people eligible for youth training is not available.
Sellafield
Mrs. Bridget Prentice : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if she will give details concerning the leak of radioactive plutonium at the Sellafield reprocessing plant in September ; and what assessment she has made of the effect on the health of workers at the plant and those who live in close proximity to it in the short and long term.
Mr. McLoughlin : This incident was fully investigated by the Health and Safety Executive's nuclear installations inspectorate who considered that there was no escape of radioactivity to the environment and there was no additional radiation exposure to workers on the site at the time of the incident. Doses to workers engaged on remedial activities have been controlled within statutory dose limits and to be as low as reasonably practicable. A statement of the incident was published in HSE's quarterly statement on incidents at nuclear installations on 4 January 1993, and also in BNFL's Sellafield site newsletter. Copies of the statement and the site newsletter have been placed in the Library.
Mr. Frank Cook : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what information is available regarding the lengths of periods of unemployment benefit disqualification imposed by adjudication officers in the area which includes Stockton, North.
Mr. McLoughlin : Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service Agency under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given. Letter from M. E. G. Fogden to Mr. Frank Cook, dated 28 January 1993 :
As the Employment Service is an Executive Agency, the Secretary of State has asked me to write to you direct to respond to your Parliamentary Question to her about the length of periods of unemployment benefit disqualifications in the Stockton North area. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency.
All decisions on claims for unemployment benefit are made by the independent adjudicating authorities.
Information about the length of disqualification periods imposed is not collated or published as each is decided in the light of the circumstances surrounding the individual case. Without knowledge of these circumstances no meaningful interpretation of the information could be made.
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I hope this is helpful.As decided by the Administration Committee of the House of Commons, Chief Executive replies to written Parliamentary Questions will now be published in the Official Report. I will also place a copy of this letter in the Library of the House.
Mr. Campbell-Savours : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what information he has regarding the lengths of periods of unemployment benefit disqualification imposed by adjudication officers for the unemployment office which covers the Workington constituency.
Mr. McLoughlin : Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service Agency under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given. Letter from M. E. G. Fogden to Mr. D. N. Campbell-Savours, dated 28 January 1993 :
As the Employment Service is an Executive Agency, the Secretary of State has asked me to write to you direct to respond to your Parliamentary Question to her about the length of periods of unemployment benefit disqualifications in Workington. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency.
All decisions on claims for unemployment benefit are made by the independent adjudicating authorities.
Information about the length of disqualification periods imposed is not collated or published as each is decided in the light of the circumstances surrounding the individual case. Without knowledge of these circumstances no meaningful interpretation of the information could be made.
I hope this is helpful.
As decided by the Administration Committee of the House of Commons, Chief Executive replies to written Parliamentary Questions will now be published in the Official Report. I will also place a copy of this letter in the Library of the House.
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Unemployment Benefit
Mr. Cox : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what information is available regarding the lengths of periods of unemployment benefit imposed by adjudication officers on people living in the London borough of Wandsworth ; and how many people have been affected by such decisions in each of the last three years.
Mr. McLoughlin : Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service Agency under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given. Letter from M. E. G. Fogden to Mr. Tom Cox, dated 28 January 1993 :
As the Employment Service is an Executive Agency, the Secretary of State has asked me to write to you direct to respond to your Parliamentary Question to her about adjudication decisions affecting people in the London Borough of Wandsworth and, although your question does not specifically say so, I am assuming that you are seeking information about disqualifications. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency.
All decisions on claims for unemployment benefit are made by the independent adjudicating authorities.
Information about the length of disqualification periods imposed is not collated or published as each is decided in the light of the circumstances surrounding the individual case. Without knowledge of these circumstances no meaningful interpretation of the information could be made.
The maximum period of disqualification for receiving unemployment benefit is 26 weeks.
Unfortunately, information is not available in the form you have requested. We compile information on disqualification by region and the Wandsworth area is included in our London and South Eastern Region. The statistical table attached gives the figures for the number, but not the lengths, of disqualifications imposed in that region.
I hope this is helpful.
As decided by the Administration Committee of the House of Commons, Chief Executive replies to written Parliamentary Questions will now be published in the Official Report. I will also place a copy of this letter in the Library of the House.
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London and South Eastern Region-Disqualifications
|Year ending March |Quarter ending March|Year ending December|Year ending December
|1992 |1991 |1990 |1989
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Left voluntarily |48,019 |11,647 |20,813 |54,115
Misconduct |18,805 |3,563 |7,618 |18,287
Refusal of employment |201 |89 |929 |1,279
Refusal of premature termination of training |- |4 |32 |91
Neglect to avail of on offer of employment |121 |27 |163 |626
Refusal or failure to comply with written instructions |574 |175 |114 |9
Trade dispute |151 |nil |nil |134
Notes:
1. Starting with April 1991 the statistical year runs from April to March.
2. Decisions on absence from Great Britain; imprisonment or detention in legal custody; and, from April 1991, those relating to training are not separately
identified in the statistical summary of decisions made and have not been included above.
Mr. John Evans : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what information is available regarding the lengths of periods of unemployment benefit disqualification imposed by adjudication officers in the area which includes St. Helens, North parliamentary constituency.
Mr. McLoughlin : Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service Agency under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
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Letter from M. E. G. Fogden to Mr. John Evans, dated 28 January 1993 :As the Employment Service is an Executive Agency, the Secretary of State has asked me to write to you direct to respond to your Parliamentary Question to her about the length of periods of unemployment benefit disqualifications in the St Helens North area. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency.
All decisions on claims for unemployment benefit are made by the independent adjudicating authorities.
Information about the length of disqualification periods imposed is not collated or published as each is decided in the
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light of the circumstances surrounding the individual case. Without knowledge of these circumstances no meaningful interpretation of the information could be made.I hope this is helpful.
As decided by the Administration Committee of the House of Commons, Chief Executive replies to written Parliamentary Questions will now be published in the Official Report . I will also place a copy of this letter in the Library of the House.
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment (1) how many claimants (a) nationally and (b) in the area containing Nottingham, North have been subject to unemployment benefit disqualification imposed by adjudication officers in each of the last five years ;
(2) what information is available regarding the lengths of periods of unemployment benefit disqualification imposed by adjudication officers in the area which includes Nottingham, North ;
(3) what guidance exists for adjudication officers when imposing unemployment benefit disqualification ; as to the length of time of that disqualification ; what is the maximum period of such disqualification ; and how often it was imposed (a) in area containing Nottingham, North and (b) nationally in each of the last five years.
Mr. McLoughlin : Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service Agency under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given. Letter from M. E. G. Fogden to Mr Graham Allen, dated 28 January 1993 :
As the Employment Service is an Executive Agency, the Secretary of State has asked me to write to you direct to respond to your three Parliamentary Questions to her about the guidance available to adjudication officers and the numbers and length of periods of unemployment benefit disqualifications in the Nottingham North area and nationally. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency. All decisions on claims for unemployment benefit are made by the independent adjudicating authorities.
Although adjudication officers are employed by us, they are appointed by the Secretary of State specifically to give independent decisions on questions relating to benefit entitlement. These decisions must comply with Social Security legislation and established case law.
Adjudication officers are assisted in their decision making by guidance contained in the Adjudication Officers Guide. This brings together the law and case law, both of which are also published and available to them, and provides further guidance based on precendent and legal advice. The Guide is written by the Office of the Chief Adjudication Officer (Central Adjudication Services) for all adjudication officers who handle questions and appeals related to social security benefits. It is hoped that its publication by Her Majesty's Stationery Office will be of help to others interested in social security, such as welfare rights groups. However, the guide is primarily designed for the use of adjudication officers and this is reflected in the way it is written and presented.
Information about the length of disqualification period imposed is not collated or published as each is decided in the light of the circumstances surrounding the individual case. Without knowledge of these circumstances no meaningful interpretation of the information could be made.
The maximum period of disqualification for receiving unemployment benefit is 26 weeks. Unfortunately because we do not collect the information about the length of disqualificaiton imposed I am unable to provide the details you requested on how often the maximum period of disqualification is imposed.
Unfortunately, the information we have is not available in the form you have requested. We compile information on disqualificaions by region and nationally. The Nottingham
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North area is included in our East Midlands and Eastern Region. The statistical tables attached give the number of disqualifications imposed both for that region and nationally.I hope this is helpful.
As decided by the Administration Committee of the House of Commons, Chief Executive replies to written Parliamentary Questions will now be published in the Official Report. I will also place a copy of this letter in the Library of the House.
The number of people disqualified nationally and in the East Midlands and Eastern region during the past five years is as follows :
|Year ending 31 |National
|December
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Leaving voluntarily:
1987 |329,516 |14,727
1988 |261,838 |12,593
1989 |202,328 |21,580
1990 |174,786 |19,025
Quarter ending March 1991 |37,226 |4,007
Year ending 31 March 1992 |140,725 |13,392
Misconduct:
1987 |98,317 |3,565
1988 |80,659 |3,269
1989 |65,495 |7,103
1990 |53,765 |5,931
Quarter ending March 1991 |12,937 |1,725
Year ending 31 March 1992 |54,005 |5,951
Refusal of employment:
1987 |2,320 |135
1988 |2,291 |121
1989 |2,799 |336
1990 |2,224 |244
Quarter ending March 1991 |186 |24
Year ending 31 March 1992 |458 |51
Neglect to avail oneself of an offer of employment:
1987 |2,036 |129
1988 |3,114 |241
1989 |2,941 |779
1990 |1,443 |402
Quarter ending March 1991 |328 |92
Year ending 31 March 1992 |1,307 |424
Refusal to comply with written instructions:
1987 |61 |Nil
1988 |78 |2
1989 |101 |13
1990 |1,138 |2
Quarter ending March 1991 |2,354 |Nil
Year ending 31 March 1992 |575 |Nil
Trade disputes:
1987 |496 |6
1988 |299 |1
1989 |313 |Nil
1990 |598 |Nil
Quarter ending March 1991 |32 |Nil
Year ending 31 March 1992 |353 |1
Refusal or premature termination of training:
1987 |6,607 |333
1988 |3,987 |252
1989 |881 |136
1990 |748 |75
Quarter ending March 1991 |33 |2
Note:
1. Starting with April 1991 the statistical year runs from April to March.
2. Decisions on absence from Great Britain; imprisonment or detention on legal
custody; and, from April 1991, those relating to training are not separately
identified in the statistical summary of decisions made and have not been
included above.
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Unemployment, Ashfield
Mr. Hoon : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the latest figure for the total number of people unemployed in Ashfield.
Mr. McLoughlin : In December 1992, the latest date for which figures are available, there were 5,623 claimant unemployed people in the Ashfield local authority district.
Training, Liverpool
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people in the Liverpool travel-to-work area are currently being trained on Government financed schemes ; what percentage of trainees leaving schemes last year are known to have found employment ; and if she will express these figures as a proportion of the total number of people registered for employment benefit in Liverpool.
Mr. McLoughlin : At November 1992, the latest date for which information is available, there were about 12,600 people on employment and youth training in the Merseyside training and enterprise council area. Estimates are not available for the Liverpool travel-to-work area. In the latest full year to March 1992, 22 per cent. of employment training leavers and 33 per cent. of youth training leavers were in a job after leaving their programme. People on Government training schemes are not included in the monthly unemployment figures.
Training (Homeless People)
Mr. Hendry : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what research her Department has commissioned into training initiatives for homeless people.
Mr. McLoughlin : In May 1992 a report was produced by Conran Roche Planning for the employment service regional office in Birmingham called "Access Needs of Homeless People into Employment and Training". I will arrange for a copy to be sent to the hon. Member. In October 1992 my Department commissioned the production of a good practice guide for training and enterprise councils based on initiatives to help homeless people find suitable training and employment. I will ensure a copy of the guide is sent to the hon. Member when it is issued.
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many 16 and 17-year-olds are waiting for a youth training place (a) nationally, (b) in Nottinghamshire and (c) in the city of Nottingham.
Mr. McLoughlin [holding answer 11 January 1993] : My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State has already announced the estimated numbers of young people seeking training at national level in a reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Gedling (Mr. Mitchell) on1 December 1992, at columns 127-28 .
Changes have been introduced to improve the estimates of demand for places at local level. My right hon. Friend is considering what further information to make available in the light of advice on the reliability of the statistics.
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Management Charter Initiative
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what efforts are currently undertaken by her Department to promote the management charter initiative code of practice, specifically among small and medium-sized enterprises.
Mr. McLoughlin : The Government have been instrumental in helping the management charter initiative (MCI) to become established and fully support its efforts to promote the code of practice to all enterprises, including the small and medium sized. With the Department of Trade and Industry and Scottish Enterprise, the Employment Department is sponsoring an MCI development project to help training and enterprise councils, local enterprise councils and chambers of commerce better ensure that the management development needs of small and medium sized enterprises are met.
Pit Closures
Ms. Glenda Jackson : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment on what date she was informed of the extent of the job losses announced in the recent British Coal pit closure programme.
Mr. McLoughlin : Information on consultation with the Department on pit closures is set out in a memorandum and supplementary memorandum to the Employment Seclect Committee which the Committee has published.
NATIONAL HERITAGE
Children's Play
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what progress has been made on discussing Sports Council funding for the national children's play and recreation unit ; and what measures will be implemented to fund children's play after March 1993 pending the completion of these talks.
Mr. Brooke : The Sports Council's budget proposals for 1993-94 include provision for some continuing work on children's play. I shall make a further statement in due course.
National Lottery
177. Mr. George Howarth : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what estimate he has made of the annual costs incurred in connection with administering the national lottery by (a) the Office of the National Lottery, (b) the National Heritage Memorial Fund, (c) the National Lottery Charities Board, (d) the Millenium Commission, (e) the Arts Councils of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and (f) the Sports Councils of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as a percentage of turnover.
Mr. Brooke : I have estimated that the annual costs of Oflot will be £1.5 million in 1993-94, and around £2 million thereafter. The percentage of turnover which these figures represent will depend on the success of the national lottery. It is not possible to say with any exactness what proportion of the funds allocated to each distributor will be spent on administration, since this will largely be
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determined by the volume of funds generated for distribution, and the volume of applications to be processed. The national lottery administration costs of the distributive bodies will be voted by Parliament annually in the normal way, and fully covered by receipts from national lottery proceeds.Minority Languages
Mr. Llwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage when he expects to make a final decision regarding his Department's position on the Council of Europe convention on regional or minority languages.
Sir Wyn Roberts : I have been asked to reply.
The United Kingdom decision on whether to ratify the Council of Europe convention on regional or minority languages will be taken by the Government as a whole. The Government hope to be able to announce their decision shortly.
Mr. Llwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he will list the organisations and individuals with whom he has had consultations on the Council of Europe convention on regional or minority languages since 5 November 1992.
Sir Wyn Roberts : I have been asked to reply.
The Council of Europe convention on regional or minority languages places obligations on national Governments. Consultations on the implications of the convention have therefore taken place within the Government.
ENVIRONMENT
Housing Stock
Mr. Simpson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what percentage of housing stock is unfit for habitation or in serious disrepair, in each standard region ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Baldry : The latest reliable figures on the percentage of unfit dwellings in each English standard region are presented in the table. The figures are from the 1986 English house condition survey and relate to the fitness standard in operation prior to the changes made in the Local Government and Housing Act 1989. Data on the percentage of dwellings in serious disrepair are not available at standard region level from this survey.
|Region
---------------------------------------------------
North |5.4
Yorkshire/Humberside |5.8
North West |6.1
East Midlands |4.8
West Midlands |6.7
South West |4.1
East Anglia |4.3
Inner London |5.5
Outer London |3.9
Rest of the South East |3.1
|--
Total England |4.8
Mr. Clifton-Brown : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the total level of local authority debt for each financial year since 1980.
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Mr. Robin Squire : The toal external debt (temporary and longer- term) of local authorities in the United Kingdom at 31 March each year was as follows :
------------------------------
1980 |33.5
1981 |35.8
1982 |35.9
1983 |36.0
1984 |37.3
1985 |40.2
1986 |42.7
1987 |45.0
1988 |47.8
1989 |50.8
1990 |51.7
1991 |53.7
1992 |54.4
Mr. Barry Field : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects to announce the outcome of the consultation on the local government finance settlement for 1993-94 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood : I am today laying before this House the Local Government Finance Report (England) 1993-94, the Limitation of Council Tax and Precepts (Relevant Notional Amounts) Report (England) 1993-94, and the Special Grant Report (No. 5). These reports establish the amount of grant to be paid to local authorities and the basis of its distribution for 1993- 94, and specify the amounts which are to be used as the basis of comparison for measuring increases in local authorities' budget in 1993-94 for the purposes of capping. I shall be sending copies of these reports to all authorities, together with a table showing the standard spending assessments and grant entitlement of each authority ; these will be placed in the Library and have been placed in the Vote Office. I also reaffirm the provisional capping criteria that I announced last November.
Marston Moor Airfield
Mr. Robert Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects to respond to the inspector's report following the public inquiry on the planning proposal to permit flying on the Marston Moor airfield near York.
Mr. Baldry : The planning inspector's formal report of the local inquiry, held on 8 to 11 September last year, was submitted to my right hon. and learned Friend at the beginning of this month and is being considered urgently. Unless there are unforeseen difficulties, my Department expects to issue the appeals decision within eight weeks of receiving the inspector's report.
Refugees
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when the Government will make a decision as to the distribution of the special grant for local authorities faced with exceptional costs arising from the influx of refugees from former Yugoslavia, announced on 16November 1992 ; and what criteria will be applied in the making of that decision.
Mr. Robin Squire : My right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment is today laying the
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Special Grant Report (No. 5). That report, inter alia, sets out the determination of the amounts of Yugoslav displaced persons grant to be paid to certain charging authorities in support of expenditure incurred in the financial year 1992-93. The criteria applied in making the determination are set out in the report.Homelessness
Mr. Spearing : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will tabulate the 10 highest spending borough or district councils in the year 1991-92, or forecast for 1992-93, or 1993-94, in their statutory duties for homelessness (a) by sum involved and (b) by amounts per head of adult population, giving the figures in each case.
Mr. Baldry : The available information is as follows :
Budgeted expenditure on homelessness<1> 1992-93
Highest spending |£ million
local authorities
---------------------------------------------------------------
1. Haringey |11.7
2. Hackney |11.5
3. Tower Hamlets |10.2
4. Westminster |9.6
5. Lambeth |7.0
6. Newham |7.0
7. Camden |6.1
8. Southwark |5.1
9. Hammersmith and Fulham |5.1
10. Hounslow |4.2
|<2>£/head
1. Hackney |90.4
2. Tower Hamlets |86.9
3. Haringey |73.1
4. Westminster |70.5
5. Newham |45.0
6. Camden |44.9
7. Hammersmith and Fulham |42.7
8. Lambeth |37.2
9. Southwark |30.4
10. Hounslow |27.7
<1> From General Fund Revenue Account.
<2> Relevant Population.
Homelessness
Mr. Simpson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many people were turned down as not being officially homeless under the provisions of the Housing Act 1985 in Nottingham, and not offered temporary accommodation, in the last year for which figures are available ; and how many were accepted.
Mr. Baldry [holding answer 26 January 1993] : The available information for 1991 is contained in edition No. 102, table 9(b) of "Local Housing Statistics : England and Wales", a copy of which is available in the Library.
Urban Air
Mr. Thomason : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when the report of the quality of urban air review group will be published ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Maclean : The executive summary of the report was published last December. The full report is published today. I am arranging for copies to be placed in the
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Library. I am grateful to Professor Roy Harrison and his colleagues for their thorough assessment of the current state of knowledge on urban air quality. We will study their recommendations with care.Controlled Waste
Mr. Paice : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many appeals have been made against the refusal by waste regulation authorities to register applicants as carriers of controlled waste ; and whether he has issued any decisions.
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