§ Mr. Kilroy-Silkasked the Secretary of State for Employment how many partially disabled persons are registered for employment in the Kirkby employment exchange area and the Ormskirk employment exchange area, respectively; for what periods they have been unemployed; what employment opportunities are available to them; and what steps are being taken to increase these opportunities.
§ Mr. Harold WalkerOn 9th September 1974, 136 registered disabled people were unemployed in the Kirkby employment exchange area and 34 in the Ormskirk employment exchange area. On 8th July162W 1974, the latest date for which information on the duration of unemployment is available, the numbers were 141 and 39 respectively and the duration of unemployment was as follows:
Kirkby Ormskirk Up to 6 weeks 21 2 7 to 13 weeks 3 2 14 to 26 weeks 4 8 27 to 52 weeks 23 12 53 weeks and over 90 15 The employment opportunities in ordinary industry in the Kirkby area are predominantly in general engineering and in Ormskirk the opportunities are mainly agricultural.
The employment and training services provided for disabled people by the two executive agencies of the Manpower Services Commission are doing everything possible to help disabled people, in these areas as elsewhere, to obtain suitable employment. These services have recently been reviewed, in consultation with the National Advisory Council on the Employment of Disabled People, and both the agencies have published their plans for developing them in future. The area is well served with sheltered employment facilities for severely disabled people and this provision has recently been expanded.