§ Mr. Paul MarsdenTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list the percentage of lone parents out of work for each year since 1992 for(a) Shrewsbury and Atcham and (b) Shropshire; and if he will make a statement. [111066]
§ Angela EagleThe information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is as follows.
Lone parents on income support Shrewsbury and Atcham Shropshire Great Britain November 1992 1— 1— 964,000 November 1993 1— 1— 1,010,000 November 1994 1— 1— 1,025,000 November 1995 1— 2,500 1,046,000 November 1996 1— 2,600 1,022,000 November 1997 1— 2,400 982,000 November 1998 900 2,400 938,000 August 19992 900 2,400 940,000 1 Data not available 2 August 1999 are the latest figures available Notes:
1. Sample size 5 per cent., therefore subject to sampling error
2. Lone parents are defined as single claimants with dependants who are not in receipt of the disability or pensioner premium
3. Shropshire County changed boundaries between 1998 and 1999. The Wrekin has been removed from figures prior to 1999 as this became a new unitary authority in 1999.
4. Figures for Shrewsbury and Atcham and Shropshire have been rounded to the nearest hundred; figures for GB are rounded to the nearest thousand.
Source:
Income Support Quarterly Statistical Enquiries, November 1992 to August 1999.
To help lone parents who are out of work and in receipt of Income Support the New Deal for Lone Parents offers advice and support with jobsearch, training, childcare and benefits. Since October 1998 over 100,000 lone parents have joined NDLP and one in three of these have obtained jobs. In addition, initiatives such as the National Childcare Strategy, the Lone Parent's Benefit Run-On and the Working Families Tax Credit are for the first time making work a viable option for many lone parents.