§ Mr. Temple-Morrisasked the Secretary of State for Employment how much the magazine "Executive Post", published by the professional and executive recruitment division of the Department of Employment costs to produce and to circulate, respectively; to whom it is circulated; what charges are made to recoup the expenditure; and what is the net cost or benefit to the taxpayer of the professional and executive recruitment division.
§ Mr. Jim LesterI am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that the annual production and distribution cost of "Executive Post", based on a mailing list of 80,000, is estimated at £0.9 million, of which postal charges account for just over half. The savings resulting from the replacement of the present staff-intensive computer matching system by "Executive Post" are estimated at £2.5 million, thus reducing the net running costs of PER by £1.6 million.
122WThe jobs magazine will, from mid-September, be sent to all jobseekers enrolled with PER for posts at the managerial, professional, executive and technical level.
PER will continue to operate as a commercial recruitment service aiming for a full recovery of its commercial operating costs, including those of "Executive Post" from fees charged to employers.
In each of the last three years PER has shown a surplus on its commercial trading account, with the result that there has been no cost to the taxpayer for its recruitment services. The cost to public funds of PER's non-commercial services, notably information and support services to those with persistent employment problems, has over the same three years shown only a modest increase despite inflation and higher unemployment. The figures are—£2.8 million in 1977–78, £3.0 million in 1978–79 and £3.5 million (provisional) in 1979–80.