§ Mr. Emeryasked the Secretary of State for Employment why, with the announcement of more places under the Community Industry scheme for disadvantaged unemployed youngsters, the scheme was not placed in the sub-area of the South-West of England (Devon and Cornwall) in view of the high unemployment there.
308W
§ Mr. GoldingThe Community Industry scheme is a national programme, financially supported by both central Government and local government, designed to help young people who for various reasons have more difficulty than their contemporaries in finding and keeping jobs, with special emphasis on those who are socially and personally disadvantaged.
Following my announcement on 3rd March of an expansion of the scheme, the Director of Community Industry invited those local authorities likely to be interested, including Devon and Cornwall, to say whether they wished to be considered for the allocation of new units. He indicated that units could only be established where the local authority undertook to support a Community Industry operation, and that priority would be given to areas where the total number of unemployed 16 and 17 year olds exceeded 500 within daily travelling distance. Formal applications from Devon and Cornwall have not yet been received, but if they are they will be considered along with others, in the light of this criterion. Account has also to be taken of the need to arrive at an equitable distribution of the limited number of places according to the needs of particular areas within the national programme.