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10 Feb 2004 : Column 1338W—continued
Hepatitis C
Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he plans to propose legislation to prevent people eligible for compensation under the ex-gratia hepatitis C payment scheme losing their social security benefits. [152525]
Mr. Pond [holding answer 3 February 2004]: Amendments to existing regulations are being prepared to ensure that any payments received under the Hepatitis C Ex-Gratia Payment Scheme are disregarded for the purposes of Income Support, income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, Housing Benefit, Council Tax Benefit and Pension Credit. Proposals for the Housing
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Benefit and Council Tax Benefit regulations were sent to the Local Authority Associations for consultation on 23 January. The regulations will be laid before Parliament once all necessary procedures have been completed, and an announcement will be made in due course.
Logic Software
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) when the new Logic Integrated Medical Assessment software will be made available for public access; and if he will make a statement; [153434]
- (2) if he will make a statement on the capability of the Logic Integrated Medical Assessment software to assess claimants whose condition is variously assessed as physical, mental or both in origin according to different authorities; [153436]
(3) if he will make a statement on the capability of the Logic Integrated Medical Assessment software to assess claimants with symptoms which differ widely from the accepted definition of the client's condition; [153437]
(4) what assessment he has made of the implications of tying the Personal Capability Assessment into the Logic Integrated Medical Assessment software for which SchlumbergerSema own the copyright; what assessment he has made of the impact on the contract renewal process in 2005; and if he will make a statement. [153438]
Maria Eagle: The Logic Integrated Medical Assessment (LiMA) software, developed by Medical Services, supports doctors who have been trained and approved to carry out Incapacity Benefit Personal Capability Assessments. It is based on fully researched, evidence-based medical protocols providing reliable, up to date medical opinion on the conditions most often seen in people claiming Incapacity Benefit. LiMA guides the doctor through the medical assessment process, prompting appropriate questions and ensuring thorough and appropriate assessment of the customer's physical and/or mental conditions.
LiMA analyses data about the individual customer, which the doctor has input following interview, observation, and focused clinical examination; and presents the doctor with a logical choice of descriptors that are consistent with the data and with up to date medical knowledge. Doctors can use clinical judgement to override the descriptor choices suggested by LiMA, but they must provide full justification for doing so.
The LiMA software is only functional as an interactive process during a medical examination for the Personal Capability Assessment. It cannot be used independently of the process, and is therefore not accessible to the public. As an internal guidance system it does not fall within Open Government guidelines on access to information.
The medical protocols that support LiMA are drawn from standard medical texts available through any public library.
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SchlumbergerSema (now Atos Origin) do not own the copyright of the LiMA software. The current Medical Services contract provides that Intellectual Property Rights for Evidence Based Medicine and the LiMA software are vested in the Department.
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of claimants have been found incapable of work under the Logic Integrated Medical Assessment (LIMA) software since the pilots were introduced; what proportion of claimants were found incapable of work without the use of the LIMA software in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement. [153435]
Maria Eagle: The information is not collected centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
New Deal for Young People
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have entered the New Deal for Young People (a) four times, (b) five times, (c) six times, (d) seven times, (e) eight times, (f) nine times and (g) 10 times or more; whether these people are included in the long-term unemployed statistics; and if he will make a statement. [152668]
Mr. Browne: The information is in the table.
| Number of times on the programme | Number of people |
|---|---|
| Four | 5,680 |
| Five | 400 |
| Six | 20 |
Notes:
1. There are no recorded instances of people participating in NDYP more than six times.
2. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.
Source:
DWP Information and Analysis Directorate
People on the New Deal for Young People (NDYP) Gateway receive Jobseekers Allowance (JSA) and, unless they have joined under the early entry criteria, will be counted in the claimant unemployment statistics as in receipt of JSA for six months or more. People on one of the four NDYP options are undertaking full-time activity designed to address their barriers to work and receive a New Deal allowance rather than JSA. People participating in NDYP follow-through receive JSA and will, in most cases, be counted in the claimant statistics as in receipt of JSA for up to six months.
Unemployment statistics are also collected through the Labour Force Survey (LFS). People on NDYP Gateway and follow-through will be classified as International Labour Organisation (ILO) unemployed if they satisfy the ILO conditions of being available for and actively seeking work. Those on NDYP options may be counted as in employment, ILO unemployed, or economically inactive depending on their labour market activity. The duration of those counted as ILO unemployed reflects a person's own assessment of their period of unemployment.
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Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many participants on the New Deal for Young People full-time education or training option were on courses lasting (a) 0–3 months, (b) 3–6 months, (c) 6–12 months and (d) over 12 months, in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [152669]
Mr. Browne: Information on the length of courses undertaken by young people on the New Deal full-time education and training option is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Information on the number of people participating on the New Deal for young people full-time education and training option in the 12 months to September 2003 1 , and the duration of time spent on that option, is in the table.
- 1 Latest available figures.
| Duration on the option (months) | Number of people |
|---|---|
| 0–3 | 7,940 |
| 3–6 | 10,590 |
| 6–12 | 5,040 |
| 12+ | 190 |
Note:
It is the policy of New Deal for young people (NDYP) that nobody should be placed on an NDYP full time education and training (FTET) course for longer than a year, and an individual's training on this option is not funded for longer than 12 months.
In a small number of cases, people may leave their FTET option early, return to claim jobseekers allowance within 13 weeks, and then complete this option. This can result in some individuals appearing to be on the FTET option for longer than 12 months, even though their time on the option would be a maximum of 12 months.
Source:
DWP Information and Analysis Directorate.
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what progress has been made in co-ordination with HM Inland Revenue to track whether leavers from New Deal programmes remain in employment 12 months after leaving; and if he will make a statement. [153458]
Mr. Browne: We announced the launch of the Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study on the 16 December. The study will link benefit and programme information held by this Department with employment records from the Inland Revenue and will be used to evaluate the Department's policies for helping people into work and keeping them in work.
The Study will improve our understanding of what happens to people who leave our benefits and programmes, including the New Deal, to enter employment, and will enable us to assess how long they remain in employment.
The Study is now under way and first publication of figures is expected at the end of the year.
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average cost per place on each of the four options in the New Deal for Young People was in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [147818]
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Mr. George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when Jobcentre Plus expects to complete its New Deal for Young People unit cost model. [147930]
Mr. Browne: The information is not available.
At the time of my previous answer to the hon. Member for Chesterfield (Paul Holmes) on 17 July 2003, Official Report, column 551W, it was anticipated that a unit costing system would now be available to produce reliable cost information on the full range of Jobcentre Plus activities, including information about the cost per place of New Deal for Young People. However, delays in developing the Resource Management System, which included a suite of unit costing systems, mean that at this time we are still unable to carry out this level of detailed costing analysis for Jobcentre Plus and other business units within the Department. A less sophisticated model, which records cost at a less detailed level, is close to completion and is planned to be operational from April 2004.
New Deal for Young People has now successfully helped more than 460,000 young people into jobs and continues to represent value for money to the taxpayer.
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