HC Deb 26 February 1998 vol 307 cc480-1
3. Mr. Paterson

What representations he has received on the new deal. [29880]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education and Employment (Mr. Alan Howarth)

We are receiving enthusiastic support from across the country. In the 24 hours following the launch of the new deal television advertising campaign, we have received more than 780 calls, mainly from employers. Most importantly, the reaction from unemployed young people themselves in the pathfinder areas has been very positive. Last week, 154 young people who were not yet eligible for the new deal presented themselves early.

Mr. Paterson

In the past 15 years, small businesses employing fewer than 20 people have created 2 million jobs, enjoying the benefits of our deregulated, free-market economy. The Federation of Small Businesses has stated that, if business rates were sharply reduced, small businesses could take on up to 25 per cent. more employees. Has the Minister received representations from such organisations on reducing Government-imposed business costs with the money that Ministers have confiscated from the utilities?

Mr. Howarth

It is really very sad that the Conservative party appears to be indifferent to unemployment among young people. As my right hon. Friend the Minister for Employment, Welfare to Work and Disability Rights reminded the House a moment ago, the Conservative party left youth unemployment at twice the national average and at twice the level that it was in the early 1980s. Now, the hon. Gentleman seems to be saying that we should not bother about unemployment among young people. Of course we desire to create conditions in which businesses, including small businesses, can prosper. However, a very large majority of the 1,362 employer agreements to take part in the new deal that have already been signed are with small and medium-sized enterprises.

Miss Melanie Johnson

Will the Minister join me in welcoming the fast-growing enthusiasm among employers for signing up to the new deal? Perhaps that enthusiasm is attributable to the fact that real-life employers have been used in the national advertisements, and that their enthusiasm is evident to everyone watching them. Does he agree also that young people's enthusiasm is growing? For the first time, they are getting a real chance to combine what they want, what they can offer and what employers want. That opportunity is making a tremendous difference to the new programme.

Madam Speaker

Before the Minister replies, I note that the hon. Member for North Shropshire (Mr. Paterson), who tabled the question, has left the Chamber. I remind hon. Members that they must wait until the question is finished.

Mr. Howarth

Indeed, Madam Speaker, the indifference of the Tory party could not have been more vividly shown. My hon. Friend the Member for Welwyn Hatfield (Miss Johnson) is absolutely right: the new deal is a massive undertaking—a real national effort—in which it seems that the only people who do not want to be involved are those in the Tory party. However, Conservative Members' support will be welcome. There is, in my experience, a welcome for the sinner who repents, and I encourage them to overcome their embarrassment—which we all understand—and join employers and voluntary organisations in a shared commitment to provide effective help to those who have been the casualties of the policies of the later years of the Conservative Government, and those who are most vulnerable to the processes of economic change.

Mrs. Ann Winterton

Is it not a fact that the Government can find only approximately a half of the quarter of a million young people whom they want to help in the new deal? Do the Government still assert that the new deal will be cost neutral, despite the fact that 17 similar schemes undertaken in 10 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries have proved to cost far, far more and to be extremely expensive? Is not unemployment still falling in this country because of the excellent economy that the previous Government left? Is the new deal, therefore, not irrelevant?

Mr. Howarth

The penny seems slow to drop. The Conservative Government left unemployment among young people at twice the level that it was among other groups in the population. We think that a proper—a vital—responsibility of Government is to address that. Each month, about 15,000 to 20,000 young people pass six months' plus unemployment, and we, for our part, will not give up on them.