§ Mr. John Grantasked the Secretary of State for Employment why training opportunities programme places in certain regions are to be cut by 15 per cent. for ethnic minority unemployed people learning English as a second language; which regions are concerned; how many places will be affected; whether this was taken into account when drafting the Manpower Services Commission's latest report "Towards an Adult Training Strategy"; and what are the reasons for this change.
§ Mr. Peter MorrisonThe only region in which the Manpower Services Commission is planning a reduction in the number of people starting courses in English as a second language in 1983–84 is the northern region, where a reduction from 46 to 30 will result from the completion of a specific programme for Vietnamese refugees. It is expected that across the country as a whole the numbers starting such courses under the training opportunities scheme will increase from 1,657 in 1982–83 to 2,071 in 1983–84.