§ 13. Mr. HindTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on how he proposes to spend the additional resources announced in the autumn statement.
§ Mr. HowardThe additional resources planned will be directed towards helping unemployed people, improving the skills of the work force and assisting small businesses and enterprise.
§ Mr. HindWill my right hon. and learned Friend contrast the £500 million that he has added to his Department's budget and last month's fall in unemployment in Merseyside, Lancashire and Cheshire with the 774 squabbling of the Opposition Front Bench, which cannot decide whether employment and training are priorities in their programme?
§ Mr. HowardMy hon. Friend is absolutely right to raise that matter. The last time the hon. Member for Sedgefield (Mr. Blair) expressed his concerns, he gave a list of our programmes which he said were to be destroyed and eliminated. In fact, they will all be maintained and will play an increasingly important role in helping unemployed people.