§ Mr. Skinnerasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will give an assurance that no reduction of the disablement resettlement service will take place in the county of Derbyshire.
§ Mr. Jim LesterI cannot give the hon. Member the open-ended assurance he is seeking. I can, however, reaffirm my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Employment's commitment to the resettlement and employment services for disabled people and refer him to my hon. Friend's undertaking to the House on 22 January, when, in relation to cuts in public expenditure, he made it clear that we would seek to protect disabled people in every way we could, and that if in some particular he was able to do so entirely he would inform the House.