§ Mr. WorthingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what percentage of the work force was engaged in manufacturing in each Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development country in 1979 and at present.
§ Mr. McLoughlinThe available information is as follows.
836W
Civilian employment in manufacturing as a percentage of total workforce 1979 1990 Australia 19 14 Austria 29 26 Belgium 23 19 Canada 18 15 Denmark 22 18 Finland 25 20 France 24 19 Germany 42 29 Great Britain2 28 19 conditions must be met before assistance can be granted, to ensure that the limited funds available are concentrated on those unemployed people to most need.
You have asked if TIS helps with assistance for second interviews. Whilst we realise it would be popular with jobseekers if help was available through TIS to cover the cost of repeat interviews, it could in practice be very costly. It could, for example, lead to the available funds having to be concentrated on a smaller number of people. We therefore limit the assistance to one interview per job. Where a selection process is a lengthy one we have to rely on the employer being sensitive to the costs likely to fall on the applicant and offer help towards them.
You also ask for the regulations to be amended to allow backdated claims. We normally expect applications for help to be made in advance as we wish to target the limited assistance available on those people who needed this incentive to apply for jobs they would not otherwise consider. However we recognise that on occasions there is insufficient time between arranging and attending an interview and in such cases we would always consider an application if it were made as soon as possible after the interview.
The scheme is currently under review and many of the eligibility conditions are being looked at to see if within the limited resources there are ways of helping more people.
Unfortunately we do not keep records of the number of applications withdrawn. However the attached chart provides the rest of the information you asked for.
I hope this is helpful.
As decided by the Administrative Committee of the House of Commons, Chief Executive replies to written Parliamentary Questions will now be published in the Official Report. I will also place a copy of this letter in the Library of the House.
1979 1990 Greece1 29 18 Iceland1 24 19 Ireland 19 17 Italy 24 20 Japan 24 24 Luxembourg 27 20 Netherlands 21 17 New Zealand 23 16 Norway 20 14 Portugal 23 24 Spain 23 18 Sweden 24 21 Switzerland 32 25 Turkey 10 13 United States 21 17 Source: OECD, except Great Britain (Employment Department).
1 Latest data available is for 1989.
2 Civilian employment in manufacturing is calculated as the sum of employees and self-employed.
Note: 1990 is the latest year for which comparable date are available.