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Written Answers to Questions
Friday 25 June 1999
EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT
New Deal (Over-50s)
Mr. Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make a statement on progress on the introduction of New Deal 50 plus. [89006]
Mr. Blunkett: The New Deal 50 plus, announced by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer in his Budget speech, 9 March 1999, Official Report, columns 173-90, will offer real and substantial support to people over 50 who wish to find jobs.
The New Deal will be voluntary and will offer people 50 and over who have spent six months on either JSA, Income Support, Incapacity Benefit or Severe Disablement Allowance help with jobsearch through individual advice from an employment adviser and programme centre provision. When an eligible 50 plus client finds a job they can claim an employment credit of £60 per week for full-time work or £40 per week for part-time work for 52 weeks and training support of up to £750. The Employment Credit, when taken with the minimum wage, will represent a minimum income guarantee of £9,000 for people taking full-time jobs. I believe this represents a huge step in providing real help to older workers who face greater difficulties in finding sustainable employment.
We have confirmed the following New Deal units of delivery as pathfinder areas for the launch of New Deal 50 plus in October:
Sir Brian Mawhinney:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment when the right hon. Member for North-West Cambridgeshire will receive a reply to his letter of 11 May on behalf of a constituent, Mrs. Hallam. [88409]
Mr. Mudie:
A reply will be issued on 28 June 1999.
Mr. Maclean:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will provide a breakdown of the percentage of participants in each of the New Deal for Young People options who have left for unsubsidised employment up to the most recent date for which information is available; and what assessment
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he has made of the performance against Government targets on improving employability through undertaking New Deal options. [87179]
Mr. Andrew Smith:
The latest Government Statistical Service figures to the end of April 1999 show that 23,900 young people have left one of the New Deal options. Of these 8,860 (37 per cent.) are known to have found sustained unsubsidised employment. This breaks down to 56 per cent. of young people leaving the Employer option, 35 per cent. from the FTET option, 41 per cent. from the Voluntary Sector option and 35 per cent. from the Environment Task Force.
These figures under-estimate the true proportion of young people finding work because many of the clients recorded as having "unknown destinations" will, in fact, have found work although they have not notified the Employment Service.
A recent large scale quantitative survey of young people who left the New Deal for unknown destinations showed that at least 43 per cent. have moved into work.
A quantitative survey of individual participants was launched earlier this year which will assess improvements in employability. Initial results from this survey are expected in September 1999.
Mr. Maclean:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will estimate how many participants in (a) the New Deal for Young People and (b) the New Deal for over 25s have left the New Deal to be transferred from unemployment benefits to incapacity benefit in the categories of those leaving for (i) other known destinations, (ii) unknown destinations and (iii) transfers to other benefits. [87177]
Mr. Andrew Smith:
People who leave New Deal to transfer to Incapacity Benefit are recorded as "transfers to other benefits" in the published statistics as it is not currently possible to break the statistics down to specific types of benefit. The latest Government Statistical Service figures to the end of April 1999 show that 19,170 young people had left New Deal to transfer to other benefits and 7,100 clients left the New Deal for long term unemployed people aged 25 and over for other benefits.
A quantitative survey of individual participants was launched earlier this year which will assess movements into other benefits. Initial results from this survey are expected in September 1999.
Mr. Maclean:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will estimate the proportion of those individuals leaving the New Deal for Young People for unknown destinations who have left to work in the black economy. [87178]
Mr. Andrew Smith:
It is difficult to make any reliable estimate of the number of young people who have left New Deal for unknown destinations who have left to work in the "black economy". People who were working and claiming benefit until caught out by the New Deal are unlikely to declare that when they cease claiming Jobseeker's Allowance. Anyone who attempts to reclaim Jobseeker's Allowance within 13 weeks of leaving New Deal will automatically re-enter the New Deal at the point which they left. That reduces significantly the risk of young people working and claiming benefits.
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Mr. Llew Smith:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what assessment he has made of the implications for employment opportunities for the disabled of the withdrawal of the Green Card DP21, version 1/93. [87493]
Ms Hodge:
The arrangements now in place to improve employment opportunities for disabled people are more effective than the previous system based on registration as a disabled person under the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1944 giving access to a "quota" of jobs in larger organisations. Experience showed that the registration process leading to the issue of the Green Card (DP21) and quota system failed to secure job opportunities for disabled people.
The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA) provides a framework of rights for disabled people which are enforced through Employment Tribunals. We have already demonstrated our commitment to comprehensive enforceable civil rights for disabled people through a reduction in the threshold for employment rights to 15 bringing in an extra 70,000 disabled employees within the scope of the DDA; and by introducing the Bill to establish a Disability Rights Commission. The Disability Rights Task Force will be reporting on what further is needed to strengthen employment rights.
Equally, many disabled people are benefiting from the New Deals introduced in the last two years. The New Deal for Disabled People is testing a range of initiatives, to help disabled people and those with long-term illness into work at a cost of £195 million. We have also expanded the specialist disability employment programmes run by the Employment Service. These include help from Disability Employment Advisers, the Supported Employment Programme, Access to Work and the Job Introduction Scheme.
Mr. Llew Smith:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment (1) what consultations he had with trades unions in the preparation of the Remploy Corporate Plan; [87491]
(3) what guidelines exist to promote the replacement of employees of Remploy with other disabled persons. [87501]
Ms Hodge:
There have been no discussions between the Remploy Trade Unions, which represent the weekly paid employees, and the Remploy Management in preparing the Remploy 1999-02 Corporate Plan. I understand that the Remploy Trade Unions were invited by the Remploy Board of Directors to a meeting to discuss the Plan in April this year. The Remploy Trade Union, MSF, which represents the majority of the monthly paid employees, was the sole union to attend the meeting. The Remploy Board have made clear that they would welcome discussions with the Trades Unions before, and during, the development of the next Corporate Plan.
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Black Country; City Pride; Dorset; Durham; Edinburgh East and Midlothian; Hull; North Derbyshire; North East Wales; and Oxfordshire.
The pathfinders will enable us to learn lessons about the operation of New Deal 50 plus and spread good practice before national roll out in early 2000.
(2) what plans he has to review Remploy's Corporate Plan in respect of its potential effect on the skill levels of Remploy employment; [87492]
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