Mr. R. C. Mitchellasked the Secretary of State for Employment what steps he is taking to reduce the amount of unemployment among blind people in the Southampton area.
§ Mr. Chichester-ClarkWe have a staff of officers who specialise full-time on resettling blind people in employment. They are most diligent and dedicated in their search for work opportunities for blind people. New initiatives have been made possible recently through the introduction of a new range of instruments, resulting from a special research project undertaken by the Production Engineering Research Association, designed to widen employment opportunities. Surveys are now being undertaken in selected areas by our blind persons training officers to identify possible new openings locally with the help of this equipment. The Southampton area will be included in these surveys.