§ Mr. Dobsonasked the Secretary of State for Employment (1) if he will give the dates over the last three years when allowances paid to training opportunities scheme trainees have been increased;
(2) when he intends to increase allowances payable to trainees under the programmes for which he is responsible;
(3) whether he proposes to keep the allowances payable to trainees for which his Department is responsible in line with the increase in social security benefits announced on 24 November.
§ Mr. Jim LesterI am informed by the Manpower Services Commission —MSC—that allowances paid to trainees under the Training Opportunities Scheme—TOPS—have been increased in November in each of the last three years at the same time as benefit rates. However, since last year the allowances paid under TOPS have been under review by the Manpower Services Commission and in the light of this review the Commission has decided to introduce a new simplified structure of allowances, which will come into operation in April 1981. Under the new scheme, MSC will continue to offer levels of allowance which will be higher than unemployment benefit, to which training allowances have specifically been linked in the past; but the new structure lays particular emphasis on setting rates which reflect training priorities. The existing scheme will be maintained for all trainees entering training before 1 April 1981. The allowance paid to those supported on the Youth Opportunities Programme—YOP, which commenced in April 1978, was also increased in November 1978 and November 1979. It is not proposed to increase the allowance paid to young people on the YOP programme, which next year will be focussed on 16-and 17-year-olds, and it remains at £23.50
§ Mr. Dobsonasked the Secretary of State for Employment, for each of his training programmes, what 230W was the net saving in the financial year of not increasing allowances payable to trainees in line with the rates of increase given over the past three years.
§ Mr. Jim LesterThe savings which will accrue if allowances paid under the training opportunities scheme are not increased this financial year in line with unemployment benefit, as has been the case in the last three years, are estimated at about £2.2 million between November 1980 and April 1981.
The saving in 1980–81 from not increasing the YOP allowance in line with the previous rate of increase is £2.8 million.