§ 39. Mr. William Hamiltonasked the Secretary of State for Employment what has been the increase in the number of civil servants dealing with unemployment benefits as a result of the escalating numbers of workers unemployed over the last 12 months.
§ Mr. MayhewBetween 1 October 1979 and 1 October 1980 there was an increase of 2,703 permanent and casual staff engaged on unemployment benefit work in my Department.
§ Mr. Richard Wainwrightasked the Secretary of State for Employment what steps he is taking to reduce delays at the counters of unemployment benefit offices.
§ Mr. MayhewSome 3,700 additional staff have been recruited in recent months to help deal with the sharp increase in unemployment. Delays at peak periods are difficult to eliminate entirely but in future these should be kept to a minimum as the unemployment benefit service now has sufficient staff to cope with current levels of unemployment.