§ Mr. Pawseyasked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether, in view of the fact that due to the manner in which his Department's computers based in Reading and Newcastle operate, his Department sends out to school leavers notices advising that since they have in sufficient contributions they are not entitled to unemployment benefit and that the notices cause great distress to recipients, he will cease sending out these notices forthwith.
§ Mrs. ChalkerAlthough most school leavers will not have paid sufficient national insurance contributions to qualify for unemployment benefit, unemployment benefit offices cannot assume automatically when a claim is made by a school leaver that the contribution conditions are not staisfied, as it is possible for a person to have acquired entitlement through vacation employment. It is therefore necessary to make inquiries about the school leaver's contribution record and to let him know the result of his claim in accordance with the provisions of the Social Security Act 1975.
We are currently looking at the notices produced by the computers in Reading and Livingstone, in consultation with the Department of Employment, with a view to producing simplified versions which will help claimants to understand the decisions more easily.