| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
17 Jun 2009 : Column 362W—continued
Jobcentre Plus: Standards
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps Jobcentre Plus has taken to manage an increase in the number of people claiming benefits. [271698]
Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the right hon. Member with the information requested.
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking what steps Jobcentre Plus has taken to manage an increase in the number of people claiming benefits. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
The Government's continuing investment in Jobcentre Plus means that it is well placed to handle the impact of the current economic conditions and deal effectively with the increase in the number of people claiming benefits. The Department also regularly reviews the capacity and capability of Jobcentre Plus to effectively deliver the full range of services for which it is responsible.
Jobcentre Plus has already implemented a number of measures to increase its workforce, maximise the use of estate and streamline business processes. It will continue this approach during 2009/10 as Jobcentre Plus continues to recruit the additional staff funded through the Budget settlement. All of this work means that Jobcentre Plus is in a strong position to maintain customer service levels and deliver the services the newly unemployed need.
I am pleased to report that, despite the very large increases in the number of people seeking assistance from Jobcentre Plus over recent months, in 2008/09 new claims for Jobseeker's Allowance were cleared in an average of just over 10 days. This is ahead of the target of 11.5 days. It is also currently seeing around 80% of people within three days from the date of their claim to talk about help in finding work.
Jobseeker’s Allowance: Lincolnshire
Shona McIsaac: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average length of time jobseeker's allowance (JSA) claimants resident in (a) Great Grimsby and (b) Cleethorpes received JSA was in each of the last five years. [279270]
Angela E. Smith: I have been asked to reply.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated June 2009:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking for what average length of time jobseeker's allowance (JSA) claimants resident in (a) Great Grimsby and (b) Cleethorpes received JSA in each of the last five years.
(279270)
Data on the number of people claiming Job Seekers Allowance (JSA) is taken from the Jobcentre Plus administrative system. The length of a claim has been calculated, as the time between the start of an individual's claim and that claim ending, for completed claims only. Table 1 shows the median length of completed claims ('off-flows') during the April count period in each of the last 5 years.
| Table 1. Median length of completed cl aims (off-flows) of Jobseeker’s a llowance for claimants resident in Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes parliamentary constituencies | ||
| Months | ||
| April each year | Great Grimsby | Cleethorpes |
| Source: Jobcentre Plus administrative system | ||
National Insurance: Greater London
Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many new national insurance numbers excluding those generated automatically at the age of 16 have been issued to residents of the London Borough of (a) Newham, (b) Tower Hamlets, (c) Waltham Forest, (d) Hackney, (e) Barking and Dagenham and (f) Greenwich in each of the last five years. [270230]
Jim Knight: The available information is in the following table.
The national insurance number statistics show the total number of NINOs allocated—not the number of migrants living in the UK. We know that many people come to work for a short period then return—the statistics do not distinguish between transient/short term working and longer-term workers.
| National insurance number registrations issued to adult overseas nationals entering the UK | ||||
| Thousand | ||||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | |
| Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10 and displayed in thousands. Some additional disclosure control has been applied. 2. Registration date is derived from the date at which a national insurance number (NINO) is maintained on the National Insurance Recording System. 3. Totals do not include adult UK nationals issued with NINOs. 4. Geographical counts are based on the most recently recorded address of the NINO recipient. Source: 100 per cent. extract from National Insurance Recording System. | ||||
Improvements have been made to the allocation of migrants whose residential address is incomplete. Figures reflect the best estimate of an overseas national’s locality at the time of registering for a NINO.
The latest year that full data are available is 2007-08. In the six months April to September 2008, 342,800 NINO registrations were issued to adult overseas nationals, broken down as follows:
| Registrations | |
New Deal Schemes
Paul Rowen:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many individuals have been on the (a) new deal 25 plus, (b) new deal 50 plus, (c) new deal for partners, (d) new deal for disabled people,
(e) new deal for young people, (f) new deal for lone parents and (g) new deal for musicians programmes more than once in a year by region since their inception. [268688]
Jim Knight: The available information has been placed in the Library.
New deal for musicians is an integral part of new deal for young people and new deal 25+ and as such is not recorded separately.
Information for new deal 50+ and new deal for partners is temporarily unavailable while a potential problem with these breakdowns is investigated.
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether a cap may be placed on referrals to (a) New Deal for Young People, (b) New Deal 25 plus, (c) Employment Zones, (d) New Deal for Disabled People, (e) New Deal for Lone Parents and (f) other New Deal programmes as a result of (i) capacity and (ii) budgetary constraints. [271718]
Jim Knight: From 6 April Jobcentre Plus started delivering the enhanced Jobseekers Regime in the 28 Jobcentre Plus districts in Phase 1. In July 2008, the existing New Deal (including Private Sector Led) and Employment Zone (incorporating new deal for lone parents) providers were notified that their contracts would end in April 2009, with the Flexible New Deal providers due to start delivering tailored support to customers from October 2009.
Following consultation with the existing providers (in December 2008), smoother transitional arrangements between April and October 2009 were agreed involving additional referrals to existing New Deal and Employment Zone providers being maintained until June 2009, with those services being continued alongside the enhanced Jobseekers Regime. The number of additional referrals was agreed with providers at a level that will enable customers to complete their provision and be returned to Jobcentre Plus on a phased basis by the end of September 2009.
New Deal and Employment Zone referrals in Phase 2 areas will continue as normal and will not be capped as a result of capacity or budgetary constraints. New deal for disabled people is not affected by these arrangements.
Jobseekers in all areas also have access to the recently introduced extra help for the newly unemployed and an expanded range of work and training options to provide jobs through recruitment subsidies, support to start a business, work-related training and volunteering opportunities.
In his Budget 2009 Report the Chancellor announced an additional £1.7 billion for the Department for Work and Pensions to deal with the increased workload and associated pressures on Jobcentre Plus and employment programme providers resulting from changes in the economy. This is in addition to the £1.3 billion announced at the pre-Budget report.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much funding her Department has allocated from (a) the £1.7 billion funding allocation announced in the Budget 2009 and (b) the £1.3 billion announced in the pre-Budget report in November 2008 to Flexible New Deal; and if she will make a statement. [277071]
Jim Knight [holding answer 1 June 2009]: The Budget 2009 announced additional funding for the long-term unemployed of £620 million in addition to £350 million that had been announced at the pre-Budget report. Most of the provision for long-term unemployed people will be provided through the Flexible New Deal over the next two years, although phased implementation means that there will still be some expenditure on New Deal and Employment Zones programmes over the next two years.
Social Security Benefits: EU Nationals
Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to the answer to the right hon. Member for Birkenhead of 17 November 2008, Official Report, column 483W, on welfare state: EU enlargement, when she expects the report on the review of EEA nationals’ access to benefits to be published. [278332]
Jim Knight: The main findings of the review were that there were robust rules already in place on EEA nationals’ access to the benefit system but that a stronger test of employment prospects should be applied to EEA nationals claiming income based jobseeker’s allowance, and that the Department’s ability to monitor claims to benefit from EEA nationals should be improved. There are complex issues related to EU law to be considered before decisions can be reached on the way forward.
Social Security Benefits: Payments
Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what estimate she has made of the average bridging payment to be paid to claimants of each type of benefit moving to fortnightly benefit payments in arrears under the provisions of the Social Security (Claims and Payments) (Amendment (No.2)) Regulations 2008 and the Social Security (Transitional Payments) Regulations 2008; [272663]
(2) what estimate she has made of the average benefit payment made to claimants of each type of benefit who will move to fortnightly benefit payments in arrears under the provisions of the Social Security (Claims and Payments) (Amendment (No.2)) Regulations 2008 and the Social Security (Transitional Payments) Regulations 2008. [272665]
Jim Knight: We have not made an estimate of the average amount of bridging payment as payments will be made at a rate equivalent to 100 per cent. of the customer's actual weekly benefit.
Information about the average benefit payment made to claimants of each type of benefit, who will move to fortnightly benefit payments in arrears, is not available.
Train to Gain Programme: North East
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in the North East are taking part in the Train to Gain programme. [276626]
Kevin Brennan: I have been asked to reply.
Table 1 shows the number of people starting a Train to Gain programme by local authority, between 2005-06 and 2007-08.
| Table 1: Train to Gain Starts in the North East | |||
| Local Authority | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 |
| Notes: 1. Volumes are rounded to the nearest 100 . Figures may not sum to totals due to rounding. 2. This table uses programme starts as a measure for comparative purposes. Full-year numbers are a count of the number of starts at any point during the year. Learners starting more than one course will appear more than once. 3. Area is based on learner's home postcode. Source: WBL, ILR, NES | |||
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |