§ Mr. McNamaraTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) in how many cases funding to Action for Community Employment schemes has been terminated on the grounds that the management committee of such a scheme was deemed insufficiently qualified;
(2) what advice the Training and Employment Agency gives to the management committees of Action for Community Employment schemes concerning the com-position of such communities;
(3) what professional or other qualifications members of the management committees of Action for Community Employment schemes are required to possess;
(4) what are the procedures employed by the Training and Employment Agency to approve the management committees of Action for Community Employment schemes.
182W
§ Mr. Needham[holding answer 15 October 1991]: ACE management committees have direct employer responsibilities for those on the scheme and are accountable for the financing provided to them. The Training and Employment Agency is not prescriptive about qualifications for membership of management committees, but in contracting agreements it must be satisfied that—relative to the size of the work force and the range of activities undertaken—people serving on a committee have the skills, knowledge and experience to competently manage a project. Agency staff maintain contacts with each ACE project through a programme of regular visitation and provide written advice and direction. The agency has never terminated an agreement on the grounds that the management committee of a scheme was deemed to be insufficiently qualified.