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18 Apr 2006 : Column 416W—continued
Gershon Review
Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what progress his Department has made (a) in monitoring progress against the Gershon efficiency targets and (b) in the development of metrics for measuring the level of service delivery; what the programme is for publishing the results of these analyses; whether these data will be subject to external audit; and if he will make a statement. [53758]
Margaret Hodge:
The Department's Efficiency Technical Note sets out how the Department will measure achievement of the efficiency targets from the Spending Review 2004 and departmental performance, including assurance arrangements for those measures. The Efficiency Technical Note is published on the Department's website.
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Home Computing Initiative
Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he had to make the Home Computing Initiative available to staff in his Department prior to its abolition. [63839]
Mrs. McGuire: DWP had set up a small project team and intended to launch an HCI scheme for staff in time for delivery at the end of 2006.
Hourly Pay Rates
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his estimate is of the hourly rate of pay which would bring a full-time worker up to the 60th median income relative deprivation line without recourse to state benefits; and if he will make a statement. [63291]
Margaret Hodge: The hourly rate of pay required to bring a full-time worker up to the 60 per cent. of median income line would depend on the number of hours actually worked.
In addition, because we equivalise (or adjust) income to take into account variations in both the size and composition of the household, the actual rate of pay required to lift someone above the poverty line would depend on the number of adults and children in the family.
Jobcentre Plus
Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what regular outreach services Job Centre Plus operates in the (a) Banbury and (b) Oxford travel-to-work area. [60051]
Margaret Hodge: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. She will write to the hon. Member.
The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions has asked me to reply to your question asking what regular outreach services Jobcentre Plus operates in the (a) Banbury and (b) Oxford travel-to-work area. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
Jobcentre Plus provides a number of outreach services within the Banbury and Oxford travel to work area.
An advice service is provided to local prisons by an Adviser who sees all inmates before they are released. This is referred to as Freshstart, which is a partnership between Jobcentre Plus and the Prison Service. The Adviser provides advice on jobsearch and job broking as well as handling benefit related enquiries. Advisers visit Bullingdon prison 3 days a week, Reading, Grendon and Springhill prisons twice a fortnight and Woodhill prison once a week.
A Jobcentre Plus Disability Employment Adviser (DEA) for Oxford, Abingdon and Didcot attends the Enablement Centre at Nuffield Hospital to interview people with health problems who may need help finding work or staying in work. Referrals are made by the National Health Service, Oxford Mental Health Care and the Elmore Team, an independent community service team who deal with vulnerable people. The DEA attends the Enablement Centre on the first Wednesday of every month.
Jobcentre Plus also provides a Redundancy Support Service to small, medium and large employers who are faced with making redundancies. Advice and guidance is provided to these employers offering support to their employees in jobsearch, benefit advice, interview techniques, writing a CV, upskilling and retraining as well as self employment options. Meetings and support services occur as a result of a significant redundancy and are therefore primarily on an ad hoc basis. This service is usually delivered at an employer's premises.
Banbury Jobcentre Plus is represented on the steering group of the Sunshine Centre, which is due to open in July 2006 in Bretch Hill, Banbury. The Centre will help lone parents, and we are considering how best we can help those who will use the Centre.
Jobseeker's Allowance
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for what average period a person aged (a) 16 to 20, (b) 21 to 25, (c) 26 to 35, (d) 35 to 50 and (e) 50 plus claimed jobseeker's allowance before gaining employment in the last period for which figures are available. [62837]
Mr. Plaskitt: The information is not available in the format requested.
The Department for Work and Pensions Research Report No. 244—Destination of benefit leavers 2004—showed that nationally, 62 per cent. of claimants leaving income support, incapacity benefit or jobseeker's allowance entered employment of 16 hours or more a week. However, this information is not available broken down by age group or duration. Copies of the report are available in the Library.
The available information on jobseeker's allowance durations broken down by age group is in the table.
(179) Denotes nil/negligible.
Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 5.
2. Figures are not seasonally adjusted.
Source:
Count of unemployment-related benefits, Jobcentre Plus computer systems (computer held cases only).
18 Apr 2006 : Column 419W
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Middlesbrough, South and East Cleveland constituency are claiming jobseeker's allowance; and what the percentage difference is from the same period in each year since 2001. [62838]
Mr. Plaskitt: The information is in the table.
Notes:
1. JSA caseload figures are unrounded, percentage differences are rounded to one decimal place.
2. JSA figures are not seasonally adjusted.
Source:
Count of unemployment-related benefits, Jobcentre Plus computer systems (including clerically held cases).
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the cost of introducing the new fortnightly job review for jobseeker's allowance applicants from June; and if he will make a statement. [63199]
Margaret Hodge: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. She will write to the hon. Member.
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking what estimate he has made of the cost of introducing the new Fortnightly Job Review for Jobseeker's Allowance applicants from June. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
We are not introducing new Fortnightly Jobsearch Reviews from June, but re-focusing them to make sure people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance are fulfilling their responsibilities by being available for and actively seeking work. The introduction of these re-focused reviews will be based on strengthened guidance to managers and staff and other support material. The associated costs will therefore be negligible.
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have moved off jobseeker's allowance and onto incapacity benefit in each of the last three years. [63200]
Mrs. McGuire: The information is in the following table.
(180) June 2002 to May 2005.
Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 100. Figures may not sum due to rounding.
2. Numbers are based on 5 per cent. samples, and are therefore subject to a degree of sampling variation.
3. Figures are given for JSA terminations where the claimant goes onto claim IB/SDA within 90 days of the JSA claim ending. It is possible that claimants may not move directly from JSA to IB, e.g. they may cease claiming JSA, find work and then claim IB within the given 90 day period.
4. Number of terminations (including those flowing onto IB) in the last year will increase following receipt of late notifications.
Source:
Information Directorate, 5 per cent. samples (terminations dataset)
18 Apr 2006 : Column 420W
John Cummings: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people were claiming jobseeker's allowance in (a) 2003, (b) 2004 and (c) 2005; and if he will make a statement. [63371]
Mr. Plaskitt: The available information is in the following table.
| As at February each year: | Number |
|---|---|
| 2003 | 905,200 |
| 2004 | 851,400 |
| 2005 | 788,600 |
Notes:
1. Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest hundred.
2. JSA figures are seasonally adjusted.
Source:
Count of unemployment-related benefits, Jobcentre Plus computer systems
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