§ Denzil DaviesTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make ex gratia payments to Mr. Paul Thomas and Mr. David Morgan, former employees of Corus, whose cases have been the subject of correspondence with her Department. [178114]
§ Jacqui SmithI am aware that Mr. Thomas has pressed for payment for himself and Mr Morgan, under the Iron and Steel Employees Re-adaptation Benefits Scheme (ISERBS) which permits us to make payments to redundant steelworkers under the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) Treaty. ISERBS was introduced in 2001 and ECSC rules permitted the scheme to be backdated to include steelworkers made redundant since January 2000. Mr. Morgan and Mr. Thomas were made redundant in 1999. The Government are not able to make ex gratia payments to individuals who do not qualify under the scheme rules.