§ Mr. Nichollsasked the Paymaster General if he is satisfied with the operation of the availability for work test; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Kenneth Clarke[pursuant to his reply, 12 January 1987]: The procedural changes which I announced on 28 October 1986 and which are based on experiments conducted last summer are now operating in the majority of our benefit offices.
The procedures are designed to meet criticism from the Public Accounts Committee of shortcomings in checking on the longstanding requirement that benefit should he paid only to unemployed claimants who are available for work.
It is too soon to assess the effectiveness of the new procedures in determining benefit entitlement.