HC Deb 12 February 1981 vol 998 cc424-5W
Mr. Andrew F. Bennett

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list in the Official Report the conditions a person has to fulfil in order to continue to draw unemployment benefit or payments under the short-time working compensation scheme, while attending courses in English for people whose first language is not English.

Mr. Peter Morrison

The entitlement conditions of the temporary short-time working compensation scheme and for unemployment benefit differ.

Once an application under the temporary short-time working compensation scheme has been approved, reimbursement may only be made in respect of workless days. Most training is, in effect, an extension of employment and it is not accepted that workers being trained at their employer's premises are genuinely on short-time working. An exception has been made in the case of the English language courses run by the industrial training unit, provided that these courses are not held on the employer's premises.

Provided a person claiming unemployment benefit who attends such a course satisfies the independent adjudicating authorities, who decide all claims for unemployment benefit, that his participation on the course does not interfere with his availability for work, payment of unemployment benefit will not be affected.

Mr. John Grant

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what was the cost to public funds of short-time working for the years 1978–79 and 1979–80 ; and what are the estimated costs for 1980–81 and 1981–82.

Mr. Peter Morrison

During the financial year 1978–79 the total expenditure on the short-time working compensation scheme for the textile, clothing and footwear industries was £899,000.

The temporary short-time working compensation scheme was introduced in April 1979. Expenditure on the scheme was £23.1 million in 1979–80.

Ml right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer told the House on 15 January that we are probably spending more than £400 million on the scheme in the current year.

The Estimates for 1981–82 will be published in March.