§ 14. Mr. Prenticeasked the Minister of Labour what steps he is taking to increase the establishment of the Youth Employment Service in areas of high unemployment among young people.
§ Mr. HareThe staffing complement of the Youth Employment Service in all areas is kept under regular review by the Central Youth Employment Executive to ensure that staff levels are adequate for the work load. Requests from local education authorities for approval of extra posts to meet particular needs are considered sympathetically.
§ Mr. PrenticeDoes the right hon. Gentleman agree that there is a special problem in some areas as revealed by the statistics of his own Department, showing the percentage of unemployment among young people in certain places as a large percentage of the total? I am thinking of a place like Doncaster, where there is a relatively small total number of unemployed but a relatively large number among young people. Does he not think that some special steps are needed here, and would not an extra strengthening of the Youth Employment Service suggest methods of dealing with this problem?
§ Mr. HareI think the hon. Gentleman knows that for the past seven years we have increased the service by over 50 per cent., and that this has been done specially to meet the heavy demands imposed on it by the bulge. There have been four examples recently where local authorities have asked for increases in staff, and we have, in fact, authorised them.
§ Mr. K. LewisDoes not my right hon. Friend agree that the officers in the Youth Employment Service are to be congratulated on the work that they have done in dealing with the bulge, and also in finding jobs for school leavers since the summer term?
§ Mr. HareI am glad that my hon. Friend said that. I think they deserve great credit. The situation has been extremely difficult this year and the Youth Employment Service has done a splendid job.