§ Mr. Alfred Morrisasked the Secretary of State for Employment what cash limits are being imposed on Remploy Limited; what estimate he has made of their effect on Remploy's pursuit of its primary objective of employing severely disabled people; what study has been made of the costs that will arise under other headings of public expenditure if severely disabled people become unemployed in consequence of these limits; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Jim LesterRemploy's cash limit for 1979–80 is £31,049 million; the limit for 1980–81 has not yet been set. Full account is taken of the company's primary objective in fixing the cash limit, and the company's plans for the coming year reflect an increase in the numbers of severely disabled people to be employed. A summary of an analysis of the costs and benefits of sheltered employment and a small case study comparing the income of a sample of individuals in a sheltered workshop with the social security benefits they would receive if unemployed, were published in the September 1978 edition of theDepartment of Employment Gazette, a copy of which is in the House of Commons Library. In the circumstances, I see no need to make a statement.