§ Mr. Hayhoeasked the Secretary of State for Employment whether the six-week waiting rule to qualify for help under the youth opportunities scheme can be suspended when local conditions indicate that suitable jobs are not available for school leavers.
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§ Mr. GoldingI am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that exceptions to the six week rule can be justified only where it is evident that the young people concerned stand no chance of finding employment within six weeks. Decisions to relax the six week rule are reserved to the MSC's Special Programmes Board in response to specific applications from individual Area Boards. Normally relaxations will be allowed only when there is no waiting list of young people who have served six weeks on the register for whom the opportunity would be suitable.