§ Mr. Allen McKayasked the Secretary of State for Employment what was the number of school leavers employed by the Manpower Services Commission schemes in the Penistone constituency for each year since its inception, giving for each year the cost of the scheme; and what cost would have been involved had the number involved registered for unemployed benefits.
§ Mr. Jim Lester, pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 25 June 1979], gave the following answer:
I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that before the start of the youth opportunities programme on 1 April 1978 opportunities for school leavers were provided under the job creation programme and the work experience programme and on certain courses run by the Training Services Agency. The information requested relating to these earlier programmes is not available at local level. Statistics relating to YOP are as follows for Barnsley and Sheffield local authority districts which take in the traditional places of employment for the constituency.
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ESTIMATED NUMBER OF SCHOOL LEAVERS ENTERING YOP Barnsley Sheffield April 1978-March 1979 350 750 April 1979-May 1979 (provisional) 20 80 Information about the cost of YOP is not available in the form requested. The average weekly gross cost per entrant to the programme nationally during 1978–79 was about £30. The net cost is about 60 per cent. of the gross cost.
The MSC took over responsibility from the Department of Employment for schemes under community industry on 1 August 1977. Statistics of school leavers and other young people employed by the Rotherham unit, which takes in the constituency of Penistone are as follows:
Young people entering CI (Rotherham) January-December 1977 125 January-December 1978 178 January-May 1979 43 The national average weekly gross cost of a filled CI place was about £48 in 1977–78 and £54 in 1978–79.
School leavers have also been assisted since 1975 under the MSC's special measures
Year Relevant Section of 1944 Act Result 1973 Section 9(5) (Discharging without reasonable cause a registered disabled person—contrary to the provisions of the quota scheme) Fine of £100 imposed 1974 Section 9(5) (Discharging without reasonable cause a registered disabled person—contrary to the provisions of the quota scheme) Case dismissed 1975 Section 9(2) (Taking or offering to take into employment a person not registered as disabled—contrary to the provisions of the quota scheme) Fine of £5 imposed on each of two charges 1975 Section 9(2) (Taking or offering to take into employment a person not registered as disabled—contrary to the provisions of the quota scheme) Fine of £25 imposed on each of two charges 1975 Section 9(2) (Taking or offering to take into employment a person not registered as disabled—contrary to the provisions of the quota scheme) Fine of £100 imposed on each of two charges Since 1977 the MSC, with the support of the National Advisory Council on the Employment of Disabled People, has conducted a campaign based on the booklet "Positive Policies" with the emphasis on persuasion rather than compulsion in the interests of helping disabled people get and keep worthwhile jobs, and there is a programme of visits to employers by disablement resettlement officers and plans for a major promotional campaign in the autumn. Despite continuing high unemployment these efforts have contributed to encouraging results with nearly 59,000 disabled people placed in employment in 1978–79 compared with 54,000 in 1977–78 and 50,500 in 1976–77.
The MSC recognises the difficulties facing employers in satisfying quota, particularly as only disabled people who voluntarily register count towards quota. The quota scheme is therefore now being reviewed by the commission and a discussion
534Wprogramme of training in industry but statistics on the geographical take-up of places are not available.