§ Mr. Barry Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Wales which Welsh men and women sit on the youth 355W training board in their capacity as Manpower Services Commission representatives for Wales; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Nicholas EdwardsAppointments to the youth training board are made by the Manpower Services Commission on a national basis after consultation with a wide range of bodies and organisations. A Welsh Office official attends board meetings as an assessor.
§ Mr. Barry Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish in the Official Report the names, occupations and sponsoring organisations of the members of the Manpower Services Commission area manpower boards for Wales; and what are the responsibilities of these boards with regard to the organisation of the youth training scheme.
§ Mr. Nicholas EdwardsThe MSC area manpower boards are in the process of being constituted. The board chairmen were appointed on 1 February:—
Area Manpower Board Gwynedd Mr. Iorwerth Ellis, General Manager, CEGB Dinorwig Clwyd and Powys Mr. David Schwarz, Optician in private practice Dyfed and West Glamorgan Mr. David C. Williams, BSC Industry consultant South and Mid Glamorgan Mr. W. John Jones, Divisional Officer of USDAW Gwent Councillor Mrs. J. Lysaght, Torfaen Borough Council In addition, membership of the boards will comprise five employer representatives, five employee representatives, one education service representative, one representative of professional education interests, one representative of a voluntary organisation, one chairman of a committee for the employment of disabled people and two or three local authority representatives—the number depending on the local authority areas covered by the board. These appointments will, I understand, be made shortly and I shall write to the hon. Member when the final list is available.
The boards will have the following responsibilities in relation to the youth training scheme:
to assess the quality and nature of the opportunities needed in their area; to mobilise local support and to encourage sponsors to come forward with projects; to establish, support and supervise a network of managing agencies; to approve within agreed targets, budgets and policy guidelines, schemes and projects for their area; to ensure that individual schemes approved within the area meet national criteria and to help ensure that the YTS guarantee to young people is met.