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Hazardous Waste
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish figures showing the total tonnage of hazardous waste transported through each port in Wales in 1990-91 and 1991-92 ; and if he will publish a breakdown of the types of waste transported.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : The information requested was published in issues of the Environmental Digest for Wales, available in the Library of the House. 1990-91 figures appeared in table 1.49 of volume 6 and 1991-92 figures in table 1.53 of volume 7, subject to the following revisions :
|Waste imported
|(tonnes)
------------------------------------------------------------
Holyhead, 1991-92
Chlorinated solvents |21.7
Miscellaneous redundant waste |16.2
|-------
Total |385.5
Newport, 1991-92
Hexachlorobenzene |199.8
Source: Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution
Temporary Accommodation
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many households in temporary accommodation in Wales were living in (a) bed-and- breakfast accommodation, (b) hostels, including women's refuges, and (c) short-life housing in each year since 1987.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : Information for the years 1987 to 1991 has been published in Table 7.9 of Welsh Housing Statistics No. 12 1992, a copy of which is in the Library of the House. On 31 December 1992 there were 248 households temporarily accommodated in bed and breakfast, 394 in hostels and women's refuges and 89 in short-life dwellings.
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Beaches (Pollution)
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what monitoring is conducted by his Department on local authority compliance with its advice concerning the public display of the results of National Rivers Authority testing of water quality of Welsh European Community designated beaches.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : As in previous years, Welsh Office officials wrote to all coastal local authorities at the beginning of the bathing season encouraging them to participate in the bathing water quality poster scheme. It is for each local authority to decide whether it wishes to participate in the scheme.
Children in Care
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many complaints have been received by the Commission for Local Administration in Wales from and on behalf of children and young people in care in each year since 1987.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : The hon. Gentleman will need to seek this information by writing to the commissioner for local administration in Wales.
Mr. Llwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what information he has on the average amount of leaving care grant given by each local authority to children and young people formerly in care in Wales in each year since 1989.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : This information is not available centrally.
Heavy Metal Pollution
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish figures showing (a) the tonnage totals permitted to be deposited in each river estuary in Wales and (b) the actual tonnage deposited for (i) zinc, (ii) cadmium, (iii) lead, (iv) copper, (v) mercury and (vi) chromium in (1) 1991 (2) 1992.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : The following levels of dredged material were licensed for disposal at sites in Welsh estuaries in 1991. 1992 figures are not yet available.
|Thousand Tonnes
------------------------------------------------
Cardiff Grounds |3,178
Newport |3,500
Uskmouth |120
Source: Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and
Food.
There are no specific amounts licensed for individual contaminants but prior to licensing the concentrations of each contaminant in the dredged material are measured to ensure that those amounts are acceptable for disposal at sea.
The amounts of the contaminants deposited at each of these sites in 1991 was published in table 2.24 of the Environmental Digest for Wales, No. 7, available in the Library of the House. Figures for 1992 are not yet available.
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Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what was the tonnage of (a) cadmium, (b) zinc, (c) lead, (d) copper, (e) mercury and (f) chromium disposed of off the coasts of Wales in (i) 1991 and (ii) 1992.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : The information requested for 1991 was published in table 2.23 of the Environmental Digest for Wales, No. 7, available in the Library of the House. Figures for 1992 are not yet available.
Children Act 1989
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what monitoring has been undertaken by his Department on the provision of accommodation for 16 and 17-year-old people designated as in need by local authorities in Wales as a result of the Children Act 1989.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : Local authorities were asked through the Welsh Office circular 26/91 to report on inter-agency collaboration under the Children Act 1989 on a wide range of issues, including provision of accommodation for children in need. Most authorities have now reported and the remainder of the responses are expected shortly.
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many complaints have been received to date by each social services department from children under section 26 of the Children Act 1989.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : Paragraph 3.53 of the Children Act Report 1992 recorded the latest available information. Eleven complaints in total had been received from or on behalf of children by local authorities in Wales in the first nine months following the implementation of the Children Act on 14 October 1991. Details are :
-
|Number
------------------------------
Clwyd |Nil
Dyfed |1
Gwent |2
Gwynedd |4
Mid Glamorgan |2
Powys |Nil
South Glamorgan |1
West Glamorgan |1
Mr. Llwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales which local authorities in Wales have not developed policy statements or related practice guidelines and procedures regarding children leaving care.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : I am not aware of a local authority in Wales which has not developed any policy statements or related practice guidelines and procedures on children leaving care.
Urban Waste Water Directive
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what progress has been made by his Department in drawing up plans for the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive in Wales.
Sir Wyn Roberts : The Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive requires member states to establish an implementation programme by the end of this year.
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Relevant Government Departments, including the Welsh Office, are working with the National Rivers Authority and the water industry in drawing up this programme.Independent Schools
e schools have registered as children's homes under the Children Act 1989.
Sir Wyn Roberts : Under the Children Act 1989, independent schools which provide accommodation for 50 or fewer children are required to be registered as children's homes unless they are approved to take children with statements of special educational needs under Section 11(3)(a) of the Education Act 1981. A list of such schools in Wales is set out as follows :
Independent schools providing accommodation for 50 or fewer pupils and which are not approved under section 11(3)(a) of the Education Act 1981
The Cathedral School, Cardiff
Howells School, Cardiff
Emmanuel School, Swansea
Netherwood School, Saundersfoot, Dyfed
St. Clare's Convent School, Porthcawl
St. John's School, Porthcawl
St. David's Ursuline Convent School, Brecon
(to re-open as St. Davids School from 1 September 1993) Their registration as children's homes is a matter for local authority social services departments.
Oil Pollution
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the reported incidents of oil pollution around the coast of Wales in (a) 1991 and (b) 1992 ; and which incidents resulted in a spillage extending for one mile or more.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : Summary information on incidents around the Welsh coast in 1991 was published in table 2.30 of the Environmental Digest for Wales, No. 7, available in the Library of the House. Figures for 1992 are not yet available.
School Pupils
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish a list showing the number of permanent pupils excluded from (a) primary and (b) secondary schools according to each local education authority in Wales in each of the last three years ; and how many pupils issued with statements have been included in each area.
Sir Wyn Roberts : The information requested is not collected centrally.
Cardigan Bay (Nature Reserve)
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make it his policy to designate Cardigan bay as a marine nature reserve; and if he will establish the posts of marine conservation wardens for the area.
Sir Wyn Roberts : My right hon. Friend is responsible for designating marine nature reserves in Wales following an application from the Countryside Council for Wales. There are no such applications currently before the Department.
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Responsibility for the management of such reserves rests with the Countryside Council for Wales.EMPLOYMENT
Training
Ms. Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment (1) for each region and for Great Britain as a whole, how many employment training or training for work trainees have employment status ; what was the position a year earlier ; and how this number has been estimated ;
(2) for each region and for Great Britain as a whole, separately for male and female, how many people have entered employment action and how many were participating in employment action in each month since January ; and what detailed information he has about the destination of those participants who have left employment action ; and if he will make a statement ;
(3) if he will publish tables showing the latest available results from the employment training leavers' survey for each training and enterprise council area in England and Wales and each local enterprise company area in Scotland broken down to show the number and proportion of employment training leavers who were (a) in a full-time job with their work experience employer, (b) in a full-time job with another employer, (c) employed in their own business, (d) in a part-time job, (e) in voluntary work, (f) on another Government training programme, (g) on a full-time education or training course, (h) unemployed and claiming benefit, (i) unemployed and not claiming benefit, (j) in a job club and (k) doing something else ;
(4) if he will publish tables showing the latest available results from the youth training leavers survey for each training and enterprise council area in England and Wales and each local enterprise company in Scotland broken down to show the number and proportion of youth training leavers who were (a) in full-time work with the same employer, (b) in full-time work with a different employer, (c) in part-time work, (d) on a full-time course at a college or training centre, (e) on another youth training scheme, (f) doing something else, (g) who were unemployed, (h) who had obtained a vocational qualification, (i) the number of questionnaires issued, (j) the usable percentage response rate and (k) the percentage of respondents who were early leavers ; (5) if he will show for each region and for Great Britain as a whole, for all trainees and separately for male and female, for the latest available period, the wages earned by employment training trainees who three months after leaving were (a) in a full-time job, (b) in a part- time job and (c) self-employed ;
(6) if he will list for each region and for Great Britain as a whole the latest available information he has on the characteristics of those who have entered employment training showing (a) the number of entrants covered, (b) whether male or female, (c) duration of unemployment, (d) ethnic origin and (e) if they have a disability ;
(7) how many people were participating in (a) employment training, (b) employment action, (c) the enterprise allowance scheme/business start-up allowance and (d) youth training in each month since December 1992 for each region and for Great Britain as a whole ; and if he will make a statement ;
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(8) how many youth training credits have been issued in the pilot areas to young people ; how many young people have taken them up ; what other information he has on the take up of credits in those areas ; and if he will make a statement ;(9) what are the latest results for each region, and for Great Britain as a whole, of the YTS/YT leavers' survey, showing for all trainees, for male and female trainees and for each separate ethnic group and for those with a disability (a) those in full-time work with the same employer, (b) those in full-time work with a different employer, (c) those in part-time work, (d) those on a full-time course at a college or training centre, (e) those on another youth training scheme, (f) those doing something else, (g) those who were unemployed, (h) those who had obtained a vocational qualification, (i) the number of questionnaires issued, (j) the usable percentage response rate and (k) the percentage of respondents who were early leavers ;
(10) if he will show for each region and for Great Britain as a whole, for the latest available period, for all leavers and separately for male and female, for each ethnic group, and for those with a disability or health problem, the number and proportion of employment training trainees who three months after leaving were (a) in a full-time job with their work experience employer, (b) in a full-time job with another employer, (c) employed in their own business, (d) in a part-time job, (e) in voluntary work, (f) on another Government training programme, (g) on a full-time education or training course, (h) unemployed and claiming benefit, (i) unemployed and not claiming benefit, (j) in a job club and (k) doing something else ;
(11) if he will show for each region and for Great Britain as a whole, for the latest available period, for all leavers and separately for male and female, for each ethnic group, and for those with a disability or health problem, the number and proportion of employment training leavers who (a) had been entered for a vocational qualification, (b) had obtained a vocational qualification, (c) had failed to obtain a vocational qualification and (d) were awaiting results ; and how many of the employment training leavers in the relevant period had completed the training agreed in their initial action plan ;
(12) how many people were receiving the business start-up allowance formerly the enterprise allowance in each London training and enterprise council in each quarter since December 1992; and what was the amount of expenditure on the business start-up allowance in the areas covered by each London TEC in 1991-92 and the budgets agreed for business start-up allowance with each London TEC in 1993-94; and if he will make a statement;
(13) what has been the average length of participation that trainees have spent on employment training in 1991-92 and 1992-93 for each region and for Great Britain as a whole;
(14) if he will publish tables showing the latest available results from the employment training leavers' survey for each training and enterprise council area in England and Wales and each local enterprise company area in Scotland broken down to show the number and proportion of employment training leavers who had (a) been entered for a vocational qualification, (b) obtained a vocational qualification, (c) had failed to obtain a vocational qualification and (d) were awaiting their results; and how
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many of the employment training leavers in the relevant period had completed the training agreed in their initial action plan.Miss Widdecombe : As the information is contained in a considerable number of tables, I will write to the hon. Member and place a copy in the Library.
Ms Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment (1) if he will list for each training and enterprise council in England their youth training performance in 1992-93 showing (a) the cost per output point and (b) the number of national vocational qualifications per 100 leavers, together with the latest information he has for 1993-94; and if he will make a statement;
(2) if he will list for each training and enterprise council in England their employment training performance in 1992-93 showing (a) the cost per output point, (b) the number of national vocational qualifications per 100 leavers and (c) the number of positive outcomes per 100 leavers, together with the latest information he has for 1993-94; and if he will make a statement.
Miss Widdecombe : We intend to publish inter-TEC comparisons for 1992-93 as soon as the final figures have been agreed. A copy will be placed in the Library. We intend to publish full year comparisons for 1993- 94 next summer. We do not plan to publish in-year tables because uneven flows of information during the year can distort comparisons of performance.
Ms Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what sums of money have been contributed from the European social fund towards (a) youth training and (b) employment training in 1992 ; what percentage contribution to the total costs of youth training and employment training this represents ; what other Department of Employment training and employment programmes have been financially supported by the ESF ; how much financial support has been given in 1992 ; what proportion of the total cost this contribution represented ; and if he will make a statement.
Miss Widdecombe : The information requested about programmes which have received European social fund support in 1992 is provided in the table. This data relate to ESF support for programmes in England and Wales :
|ESF support<1> (£|ESF support as a
|million) |percentage of
|expenditure
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Employment training |140.25 |16.88
Youth training |14.54 |2.53
Enterprise allowance scheme |12.31 |16.59
<1> Applications totals.
TEC Challenge
Ms Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what criteria he used in selecting the winners of TEC challenge ; and if he will place copies of the successful bids in the Library.
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Miss Widdecombe : The advisory panel chaired by the permanent secretary of the Employment Department appraised the bids on eight criteria, based upon those set out in the training and enterprise council challenge prospectus published in April, a copy of which is in the Library. I made my decisions after receiving advice from the advisory panel. The TEC challenge bids are commercial-in-confidence ; however, I have placed a list showing brief descriptions of the winning bids in the Library.
Job Clubs
Ms Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people in each region and Great Britain as a whole since April 1992 have joined job clubs, how many have left, how many leavers got jobs and how many entered another positive outcome ; and if he will break down the information by the ethnic origin and sex of participants.
Ms Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many job clubs were operational for each region and for Great Britain as a whole at the latest available date ; and how many of them in each region catered for groups with special needs.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : 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 Ms Clare Short, dated 26 July 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 him about performance information about the Jobclub programme. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency. Table "A" attached shows for each region and for Great Britain the numbers who have joined Jobclubs between 30 March 1992 and 25 June 1993 together with information during the same period of those members leaving. Leavers who are shown as going into other positive outcomes have gone on to either training, full-time education or self- employment.
As I indicated in my letter to you of 28 October 1992, information on the ethnic background and male/female characteristics of Jobclub leavers is now collected on annual sample survey basis. The information was collected for the month of March 1993, and the results of the count are in tables "B". Tables "B" show the performance between 1 March 1993 and 26 March 1993 for male and female Jobclub members and by ethnic origin on a regional basis and for Great Britain as a whole.
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 placea a copy of this letter in the Library of the House.
Table A
Jobclub entrants and leavers information
30 March 1992 to 25 June 1993
Region |Jobclub entrants |Jobclub leavers |Leavers into jobs |Leavers into jobs |Leavers into other|Leavers into
|per cent. |positive outcomes |positive outcomes
|per cent.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Northern |17,699 |17,766 |7,087 |40 |1,841 |50
Yorks and Humberside |23,755 |23,233 |11,024 |47 |3,348 |62
East Midlands |25,174 |24,459 |11,990 |49 |3,597 |64
London and South East |83,281 |80,755 |33,521 |42 |11,585 |56
South West |20,121 |19,717 |9,573 |49 |2,821 |63
Wales |15,972 |15,320 |8,199 |54 |2,099 |67
West Midlands |26,014 |26,258 |11,872 |45 |4,268 |61
North West |39,939 |39,855 |17,808 |45 |4,690 |56
Scotland |26,266 |26,104 |12,974 |50 |3,247 |62
Nationally |278,221 |273,467 |124,048 |45 |37,496 |59
Jobclub: Ethnic origin and Sex of participants
March 1993
National |Leavers into Jobs |Leavers into other|Total Leavers
|positive outcomes
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
White |7,790 |1,813 |16,374
Black/Afro Caribbean |345 |121 |803
Indian/Pakistani Bangladesh/
Sri Lanken |417 |169 |1,034
None of the above |80 |33 |223
Preferred not to say |40 |20 |123
Total |8,672 |2,156 |18,557
Male |6,740 |1,654 |14,755
Female |1,932 |502 |3,802
Totals |8,672 |2,156 |18,557
Jobclub: Ethnic origin and Sex of participants
March 1993
Northern |Leavers into Jobs |Leavers into other|Total Leavers
|positive outcomes
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
White |478 |91 |1,155
Black/Afro Caribbean |2 |1 |4
Indian/Pakistani Bangladesh/
Sri Lanken |4 |4 |10
None of the above |0 |0 |8
Preferred not to say |0 |0 |4
Total |484 |96 |1,181
Male |398 |81 |988
Female |86 |15 |193
Totals |484 |96 |1,181
Jobclub: Ethnic origin and Sex of participants
March 1993
Yorkshire and |Leavers into Jobs |Leavers into other|Total Leavers
Humberside |positive outcomes
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
White |794 |180 |1,588
Black/Afro Caribbean |11 |2 |27
Indian/Pakistani Bangladesh/
Sri Lanken |37 |19 |90
None of the above |4 |5 |14
Preferred not to say |3 |0 |4
Total |849 |206 |1,723
Male |659 |165 |1,383
Female |190 |41 |340
Totals |849 |206 |1,723
Column 672
Jobclub: Ethnic origin and Sex of participants
March 1993
East Midlands and |Leavers into Jobs |Leavers into other|Total Leavers
Eastern |positive outcomes
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
White |812 |198 |1,599
Black/Afro Caribbean |9 |5 |22
Indian/Pakistani Bangladesh/
Sri Lanken |33 |9 |69
None of the above |6 |1 |10
Preferred not to say |0 |0 |6
Total |860 |213 |1,706
Male |681 |168 |1,381
Female |179 |45 |325
Totals |860 |213 |1,706
Jobclub: Ethnic origin and Sex of participants
March 1993
London and South |Leavers into Jobs |Leavers into other|Total Leavers
East |positive outcomes
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
White |1,771 |499 |3,954
Black/Afro Caribbean |270 |95 |634
Indian/Pakistani Bangladesh/
Sri Lanken |214 |75 |569
None of the above |57 |20 |153
Preferred not to say |31 |19 |86
Total |2,343 |708 |5,396
Male |1,723 |507 |4,066
Female |620 |201 |1,330
Totals |2,343 |708 |5,396
Jobclub: Ethnic origin and Sex of participants
March 1993
South West |Leavers into Jobs |Leavers into other|Total Leavers
|positive outcomes
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
White |584 |142 |1,231
Black/Afro Caribbean |8 |2 |12
Indian/Pakistani Bangladesh/
Sri Lanken |11 |2 |15
None of the above |2 |3 |6
Preferred not to say |0 |0 |2
Total |605 |149 |1,266
Male |469 |116 |1,008
Female |136 |33 |258
Totals |605 |149 |1,266
Column 673
Jobclub: Ethnic origin and Sex of participants
March 1993
Wales |Leavers into Jobs |Leavers into other|Total Leavers
|positive outcomes
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
White |526 |112 |1,024
Black/Afro Caribbean |3 |2 |8
Indian/Pakistani Bangladesh/
Sri Lanken |1 |2 |9
None of the above |3 |0 |6
Preferred not to say |1 |0 |3
Total |534 |116 |1,050
Male |438 |89 |860
Female |96 |27 |190
Totals |534 |116 |1,050
Jobclub: Ethnic origin and Sex of participants
March 1993
West Midlands |Leavers into Jobs |Leavers into other|Total Leavers
|positive outcomes
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
White |712 |186 |1,348
Black/Afro Caribbean |31 |12 |67
Indian/Pakistani Bangladesh/
Sri Lanken |89 |48 |199
None of the above |4 |1 |9
Preferred not to say |2 |0 |5
Total |838 |247 |1,628
Male |654 |190 |1,280
Female |184 |57 |348
Totals |838 |247 |1,628
Jobclub: Ethnic origin and Sex of participants
1 April 1991 to 27 March 1992
North West |Leavers into Jobs |Leavers into other|Total Leavers
|positive outcomes
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
White |1,269 |244 |2,684
Black/Afro Caribbean |9 |2 |27
Indian/Pakistani Bangladesh/
Sri Lanken |26 |8 |68
None of the above |2 |2 |11
Preferred not to say |1 |1 |7
Total |1,307 |257 |2,797
Male |1,019 |208 |2,272
Female |288 |49 |525
Totals |1,307 |257 |2,797
Jobclub: Ethnic origin and Sex of participants
March 1993
Scotland |Leavers into Jobs |Leavers into other|Total Leavers
|positive outcomes
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
White |844 |161 |1,791
Black/Afro Caribbean |2 |0 |2
Indian/Pakistani Bangladesh/
Sri Lanken |2 |2 |5
None of the above |2 |1 |6
Preferred not to say |2 |0 |6
Total |852 |164 |1,810
Male |699 |130 |1,517
Female |152 |34 |293
Totals |852 |164 |1,810
Job Interview Guarantee Scheme
Ms Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many unemployed people have taken part in the job interview guarantee scheme in each region in 1992-93 and in the first quarter of 1993-94 ; and how many participants have secured full-time or part-time employment with their sponsoring employer.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : 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 Ms Clare Short, dated 26 July 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 him about the Job Interview Guarantee (JIG). This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency.
You asked how many unemployed people have taken part in the Job Interview Guarantee (JIG) Scheme in each region in 1992-93 and in the first quarter of 1993-94 and how many participants have secured full or part-time employment with the sponsoring employer. The information is set out by region in the attached table.
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.
Job interview guarantee scheme
Numbers of clients assisted and placed in jobs
|Number of clients |Number of clients |Number of clients |Number of clients
|assisted 1992-93 |placed 1992-93 |assisted April-June|placed April-June
|1993 |1993
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Northern Region |9,342 |3,110 |4,940 |1,490
Yorks and Humberside Region |13,851 |4,920 |14,107 |3,806
East Midlands and Eastern Region |12,978 |5,123 |4,954 |2,090
London and South East Region |64,673 |23,811 |26,184 |10,421
South West Region |26,994 |8,162 |7,434 |3,367
Office for Wales |14,249 |5,365 |5,884 |2,613
West Midlands Region |19,177 |7,718 |5,156 |2,688
North West Region |18,715 |8,112 |11,254 |4,874
Office for Scotland |16,081 |10,380 |6,058 |4,672
National |196,060 |76,701 |85,971 |36,021
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Child Care
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what action has been taken by his Department to implement the 1992 European Community recommendation on child care.
Miss Widdecombe : The Government welcome the recommendation, which is in tune with our policy of encouraging measures which allow parents to balance their work and family responsibilities. Since the recommendation was adopted in March 1992, we have introduced a major £45 million initiative to provide 50,000 extra out-of-school child care places for the over-fives. Shortly before the recommendation was adopted, we published the booklet, "The Best of Both Worlds" which illustrates with case studies a variety of flexible employment practices which can benefit working parents and employers alike. My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State, in his previous post as the Secretary of State for Wales, launched the Chwarae Teg or "Fair Play" initiative which brings together a partnership of the public, private and voluntary sectors to promote new child care provision and flexible working as part of a strategy to increase opportunities for women in the work force. We will continue to look for opportunities to promote a more family-friendly working environment.
Actively-seeking-work Test
Ms Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many claimants in each quarter since April 1992 for each region and for Great Britain as a whole have (a) been issued with warning letters for not actively seeking work, (b) had their claim referred to an adjudication officer for not actively seeking work, (c) had their claims allowed or disallowed for not actively seeking work, (d) had their claim referred to an adjudication
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officer for refusing suitable employment and (e) how many of those in (d) have had their benefit disqualified or not disqualified.Mr. Michael Forsyth : 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 Ms Clare Short, dated 26 July 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 him about the number of claimants who have been issued with warning letters for not actively seeking work ; had their claim referred to an adjudication officer for not actively seeking work ; had their claims allowed or disallowed for not actively seeking work ; had their claim referred to an adjudication officer for refusing suitable employment ; and how many of those have had their benefit disqualified or not disqualified in each quarter since April 1992 for each region and for Great Britain as a whole. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency.
The publication "Analysis of Adjudication Officers' Decisions", includes the statistics you asked for on actively seeking work and refusal of employment, for each quarter since April 1992 to March 1993, for each standard region and for Great Britain as a whole, and copies are held in the Library of the House.
A change introduced in the Social Security Act 1989 removed the requirement that employment offered had to be suitable for the person concerned ; instead the client now has to show that they have good cause for refusing any job which is offered to them.
I enclose a table showing by Region, and Nationally, the number of warning letters issued to clients whose worksearch activity was not considered to be adequate.
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.
Warning letters issued
by region and nationally for each quarter since April 1992
|April to June 1992 |July to September |October to December|January to March
|1992 |1992 |1993
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Northern |300 |290 |163 |185
Yorkshire and Humberside |282 |292 |166 |163
East Midlands and Eastern |203 |202 |78 |98
London and South Eastern |2,126 |2,250 |1,758 |1,515
South Western |406 |388 |271 |349
Wales |233 |183 |71 |72
West Midlands |619 |486 |235 |190
North Western |1,678 |2,006 |1,510 |1,057
Scotland |887 |612 |337 |363
|------- |------- |------- |-------
National |6,734 |6,709 |4,589 |3,992
Work Trials
Ms Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many work trial agreements have been made with employers in 1992-93 and in the first quarter of 1993-94, for each region and for Great Britain as a whole ; how many unemployed people have taken part in work trials in each region ; how many participants have secured full-time or part-time employment with their sponsoring
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employer ; what is the best information he has on the wages they receive ; how long those jobs have lasted ; and if he will make a statement.Mr. Michael Forsyth : 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 Ms Clare Short, dated 26 July 1993 :
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