§ 1. Gillian MerronTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make a statement on the voluntary sector and environmental task force options available as part of his proposals to provide employment for young people. [8595]
§ The Secretary of State for Education and Employment (Mr. David Blunkett)My right hon. Friends the Ministers for the Environment and for Employment, Welfare to Work and Disability Rights and the Minister of State, Home Office—my hon. Friend the Member for Cardiff, South and Penarth (Mr. Michael)—last week had an excellent launch of the voluntary sector and environmental task force element of the new deal, which will play a crucial part at local level in the consortiums to be developed and the programme to be laid out.
§ Gillian MerronI thank my right hon. Friend for his welcome reply. Will the voluntary and environmental sectors be represented on the task force chaired by Sir Peter Davis? I believe that their involvement is crucial to its success.
§ Mr. BlunkettThe task force will play a crucial role in the development of the programme and its successful promotion locally. Together with the business sector and others, those sectors will be represented to ensure that a wide view is heard. We have also established an advisory group in which environmental and voluntary sector interests are well represented. They will work at regional and local level to help to develop the programme.
§ Mr. Clifton-BrownDoes the Secretary of State agree that this scheme could do much good environmental work in Gloucestershire, such as maintaining dry-stone walls and specialist Cotswold stone buildings? Does he further agree that, if we were able to deploy young people on such schemes, the skills that they would have to learn to carry out those tasks, which might otherwise be lost, would be retained in rural areas?
§ Mr. BlunkettI agree entirely. I welcome the commitment, and therefore the consensus, that the hon. Member brings to this matter.