§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment (1) if he will publish for the latest date available the numbers of unemployed people registered under section 2 of the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1944 and the percentage that represents of the total section 2 register who have been unemployed for (a) up to two weeks, (b) over two and up to four weeks, (c) over four 252W and up to six weeks, (d) over six and up to eight weeks, (e) over eight and up to 13 weeks, (f) over 13 and up to 26 weeks, (g) over 26 and up to 52 weeks and (h) over 52 weeks;
(2) what is the number of places in sheltered employment and the number of section 2 registered disabled people for the latest available date for each year since 1976; and what is the projected number of places to be offered in sheltered employment schemes for the next five years.
§ Mr. AlisonThe numbers of severely disabled people working in sheltered employment on 31 March 1981—the latest available figures—and on the same date in each of the five preceding years are given in the following table 1.
The overall number of places provided by these establishments in the future will depend upon the nature of the operations upon which they are engaged and the demand for goods and services they provide. MSC plans include provision for a modest number of new developments over the next few years.
Table 2 shows, also for March 1981 and the five preceding years, the numbers included in the list maintained by the disablement resettlement service who are likely to be capable only of work in sheltered conditions. Not all of them are in fact registered as disabled under the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1944.
Table 3 sets out an analysis of unemployed severely disabled people at the latest available date—8 October 1981—by duration of unemployment.
TABLE 1 Numbers of severely disabled people working in sheltered employment as at 31 March in the following years: Year Number 1976 13,755 1977 13,345 1978 13,311 1979 13,899 1980 13,872 1981 13,839 253W
TABLE 2 Numbers of severely disabled people who were unemployed, in March, in the following years: Year *Registered severely disabled people †Unregistered severely disabled people 1976 11,634 ‡ 1977 11,425 ‡ 1978 10,376 4,094 1979 8,709 3,799 1980 7,944 3,658 1981 7,796 3,890 * "Registered" indicates people who are registered as disabled under section 6 of the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1944. † "Unregistered" indicates those severely disabled people who are not registered in this way. ‡ Records not maintained.
Table 3 Number of weeks unemployment Registered severely disabled people Unregistered severely disabled people No. Per cent. No. Per cent. (a) Two or less 84 1.1 49 1.2 (b) Over 2 and up to 4 77 1.0 32 0.8 (c) Over 4 and up to 6 61 0.8 50 1.2 (d) Over 6 and up to 8 75 0.9 45 1.1 (e) Over 8 and up to 13 158 2.0 103 2.5 (f) Over 13 and up to 26 426 5.5 250 6.0 (g) Over 26 and up to 52 812 10.5 449 10.9 (h) Over 52 6,079 78.2 3,155 76.3 7,767 100 4,133 100
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will publish for the latest available date
Duration of unemployment Registered disabled people Total Great Britain workforce (a) up to two weeks 2,091 (2.7%) 135,901 (5.3%) (b) over two and up to four weeks 2,019 (2.6%) 136,123 (5.3%) (c) over four and up to six weeks 1,784 (2.3%) 128,274 (5.0%) (d) over six and up to eight weeks 1,627 (2.1%) 108,360 (4.2%) (e) over eight and up to 13 weeks 3,817 (5.0%) 235,370 (9.1%) (f) over 13 and up to 26 weeks 9,259 (12.0%) 470,660 (18.2%) (g) over 26 and up to 52 weeks 14,831 (19.3%) 635,843 (24.7%) (h) over 52 weeks 41,628 (54.0%) 727,472 (28.2%)
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment when he expects to make a final decision on the Manpower Services Commission's proposals on the future of the quota scheme; if he will make it his policy not to introduce any changes until they have been conclusively shown to increase the employment opportunities for disabled people; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. AlisonThe Government have announced that they are giving interested parties and individuals until the end of the year to comment on the commission's proposals. We will consider very carefully the comments received and the issues involved before coming to decisions on the future of the quota scheme.
254W
Placings of Registered and Unregistered Disabled People (Percentage comparisons with the previous year) Registered Unregistered Total 1978 January 1,944 (—) 1,261 (—) 3,205 (—) February 2,756 (-9.8) 1,780 (—) 4,536 (—) March 2,724 (-14.2) 1,830 (—) 4,554 (—) April 3,461 (-1.5) 2,268 (+19.7) 5,729 (+5.9) May 3,315 (-5.0) 2,192 (+24.7) 5,307 (+5.3) June 3,159 (+2.8) 2,079 (+26.2) 5,328 (+11.0) July 2,955 (-7.4) 2,013 (+11.1) 4,968 (-0.7) August 2,982 (+28.6) 2,030 (+45.2) 5,012 (+34.9) September 3,043 (+21.9) 2,266 (+67.7) 5,309 (+38.0) October 2,997 (-5.9) 2,027 (+6.8) 5,024 (-1.1) November 2,946 (+6.3) 2,085 (+19.6) 5,031 (+11.4) December 2,663 (+1.9) 2,070 (+29.1) 4,733 (+12.3) 1979 January 1,855 (-4.6) 1,451 (+15.1) 3,306 (+3.1) February 2,437 (-11.6) 1,929 (+8.4) 4,366 (-3.7) March 2,635 (-3.3) 2,080 (+13.7) 4,715 (+3.5) April 3,037 (-12.3) 2,432 (+7.2) 5,469 (-4.5) the numbers and percentages of unemployed registered disabled people and the unemployed among the total United Kingdom work force who have been unemployed (a) up to two weeks, (b) over two and up to four weeks, (c) over four and up to six weeks, (d) over six weeks and up to eight weeks, (e) over eight and up to 13 weeks, over 13 and up to 26 weeks, (g) over 26 and up to 52 weeks and (h) over 52 weeks.
§ Mr. AlisonThe numbers unemployed and the unemployment percentages amongst registered disabled people and the total work force in Great Britain within the periods requested is set out as follows. The information is not available for the United Kingdom as a whole. The information relates to 8 October 1981, the latest date for which comparative figures showing the duration of unemployment are available.
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment how many registered and unregistered disabled people have been placed in employment by disablement resettlement officers for each month in the years 1978, 1979, 1980 and the latest available date; and what was the percentage increase in placements over the previous year.
§ Mr. AlisonThe information requested is set out as follows. Statistics of unregistered disabled people placed were not maintained prior to April 1977. Figures to calculate a percentage comparison for January 1978 are not available.
255W
Registered Unregistered Total May 3,685 (+18.3) 2,664 (+21.5) 6,349 (+19.6) June 4,046 (+28.1) 2,828 (+36.0) 6,874(31.2) July 2,928 (-0.9) 2,204 (+9.5) 5,132 (+3.3) August 2,537 (-14.9) 2,025 (-0.2) 4,562 (-9.0) September 2,989 (-1.8) 2,417 (+6.7) 5,406 (+1.8) October 2,585 (-13.7) 2,284 (+12.7) 4,869 (-3.1) November 2,487 (-15.6) 2,194 (+5.2) 4,681 (-6.9) December 2,269 (-14.8) 2,101 (+1.5) 4,370 (-7.7) 1980 January 1,621 (-12.6) 1,364 (-6.0) 2,985 (-9.7) February 2,640 (+8.3) 2,314 (+20.0) 4,954 (+13.5) March 2,168 (-17.7) 1,917 (-7.9) 4,085 (-13.4) April 2,297 (-24.4) 1,791 (-26.3) 4,088 (-25.2) May 2,418 (-34.4) 2,042 (-23.3) 4,450 (-29.7) June 2,819 (-30.3) 2,262 (-20.0) 5,081 (-26.0) July 1,878 (-35.9) 1,575 (-28.5) 3,453 (-32.7) August 1,818 (-28.3) 1,624 (-19.8) 3,442 (-24.5) September 1,475 (-50.6) 1,293 (-46.5) 2,768 (-48.8) October 1,644 (-36.4) 1,326 (-41.9) 2,970 (-39.0) November 1,770 (-28.8) 1,544 (-29.6) 3,314 (-29.2) December 1,377 (-39.3) 1,177 (-44.0) 2,554 (-41.5) 1981 January 1,094 (-32.5) 870 (-36.2) 1,964 (-34.2) February 1,402 (-46.9) 1,140 (-50.7) 2,543 (-48.9) March 1,541 (-28.9) 1,289 (-32.7) 2,830 (-30.7) April 1,685 (-26.6) 1,366 (-23.7) 3,051 (-25.4) May 2,026 (-16.2) 1,623 (-20.5) 3,649 (-18.2) June 1,963 (-30.4) 1,319 (-41.7) 3,282 (-35.4) July 1,621 (-13.7) 1,201 (-23.7) 2,822 (-18.3) August 1,691 (-7.0) 1,378 (-15.1) 3,069 (-10.8) September 1,590 (+7.8) 1,150 (-11.0) 2,740 (-1.0) October 1,662 (-1.1) 1,231 (-7.2) 2,893 (-2.6)
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list the numbers of disabled people employed in (a) sheltered workshops employed by local authorities, (b) sheltered workshops administered by voluntary bodies, (c) Remploy factories and (d) industrial enclaves in Wales, Scotland, the South-East, South-West, East Anglia, West Midlands, East Midlands, Yorkshire and Humberside, North-West, the North and the United Kingdom for each of the last five years.
§ Mr. AlisonThe numbers of severely disabled people employed during each of the last five years in(a) local authority workshops (b) voluntary body workshops (c) Remploy factories and (d) industrial enclaves (now known as "Sheltered Industrial Groups") are set out in the following tables.
The figures are shown by the Manpower Services Commission's employment service division areas. A key is provided to show how these areas equate with the Department of Employment regions named in the question. Because of boundary adjustments, it is not possible to reconcile the two accurately except at considerable expense.
The totals for Great Britain are also shown. Figures for Northern Ireland are not included as the provision of sheltered employment there is the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.
256W
Table 1 Local Authority Sheltered Workshops ESD Area 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1. North-West 96 92 85 85 84 2. Manchester 234 230 228 170 167 3. Merseyside 184 155 186 162 144
ESD Area 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 4. Wales 393 425 476 464 444 5. Western 327 363 371 355 335 6. South-West 243 248 269 250 258 7. Scotland East and North 403 394 395 388 384 8. Scotland West 187 180 193 186 188 9. North-East 194 192 192 207 198 10. East Pennine 305 401 369 372 364 11. East Midlands 285 237 253 319 236 12. West Midlands 340 342 351 344 315 13. Eastern 192 198 200 215 206 14. Southern 189 102 119 124 118 15. London South 216 247 253 262 253 16. London North-East 134 101 110 131 179 17. London North-West 86 89 91 93 97 18. South-East 54 139 115 116 110 Totals for Great Britain 4,062 4,135 4,256 4,243 4,080 257W
Table 2 Voluntary Body Sheltered Workshops ESD Area 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1. North-West NIL NIL NIL NIL NIL 2. Manchester NIL NIL NIL 50 48 3. Merseyside 60 46 49 61 53 4. Wales 39 17 13 NIL NIL 5. Western 86 57 97 105 104 6. South-West 12 10 15 14 19 7. Scotland East and North 155 175 172 165 188 8. Scotland West 189 193 200 199 168 9. North-East NIL NIL NIL NIL NIL 10. East Pennine 136 155 151 203 206 11. East Midlands NIL 9 9 11 NIL 12. West Midlands 95 95 87 89 94 13. Eastern 98 92 137 129 142 14. Southem 56 73 86 84 84
ESD Area 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 15. London South 129 66 73 79 85 16. London North-East NIL NIL 15 NIL NIL 17. London North-West 15 13 11 11 NIL 18. South-East 122 122 110 68 73 Totals for Great Britain 1,192 1,123 1,225 1,268 1,264
Table 3 Remploy Factories ESD Area 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1. North-West 703 488 524 513 500 2. Manchester 396 641 667 663 664 3. Merseyside 195 131 197 183 202 4. Wales 1,318 1,328 1,323 1,302 1,270 5. Western 331 323 310 307 314 6. South-West 262 256 260 240 291 7. Scotland East and North 437 416 433 424 433 8. Scotland West 414 401 444 432 463 9. North-East 1,057 982 1,071 1,062 1,025 10. East Pennine 713 947 1,027 1,014 1,003 11. East Midlands 555 329 333 359 412 12. West Midlands 581 599 587 580 589 13. Eastern 179 178 181 164 166 14. Southern 124 138 131 131 134 15. London South 228 221 242 260 257 16. London North-East 310 340 331 337 343 17. London North-West 169 176 180 167 183 18. South-East NIL NIL NIL NIL NIL Totals for Great Britain 7,972 7,894 8241 8,138 8,249
Table 4 Industrial Enclaves (Now Known as "Sheltered Industrial Groups") ESD Area 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1. North-West NIL NIL NIL NIL NIL 2. Manchester 26 27 27 27 29 3. Merseyside 6 7 7 6 6 4. Wales NIL NIL NIL NIL 7 5. Western 17 18 17 21 11 6. South-West NIL NIL NIL 3 8 7. Scotland East and North NTL 7 9 24 44 8. Scotland West NIL NIL NIL NIL NIL 9. North-East NIL 11 11 20 20 10. East Pennine 26 25 43 41 43 11. East Midlands 25 29 17 17 15 12. West Midlands NIL NIL NIL NIL NIL 13. Eastern 2 16 26 35 33 14. Southern NIL NIL NIL NIL NIL 15. London South 11 9 13 19 19 16. London North-East 6 10 7 10 10 17. London North-West NIL NIL NIL NIL NIL 18. South-East NIL NIL NIL NIL 1 Totals for Great Britain 119 159 177 223 246 Key to Tables 1 to 4: The following list shows the relationship between the operational areas of the Manpower Services Commission employment service division which are named in the preceding tables, and the Department of Employment regions to which reference is made in the question. The figures in brackets following the names of the employment service division areas correspond with those in the tables. Where an ESD area overlaps more than one DE region, this is indicated by inserting the word "part" after the number.
258W
DE Region Made up of ESD Areas Shown in the Tables Above North-West North-West area (excluding Cumbria district), Manchester, Merseyside (1 (part); 2; 3) Wales Wales area (4) South-West South-West area and Western (excluding Shrewsbury and
Worcester districts) (6; 5 (part)) Scotland Scotland West and Scotland East and North areas (7 and 8) Northern North-East area and Cumbria district of North-West Area (9 and 1 (part)) Yorkshire and Humberside East Pennine area (10) East Midlands East Midlands area (11) West Midlands West Midlands area and Shrewsbury and Worcester districts of Western area (12 and 5 (part)) East Anglia Cambridge and Norwich districts of Eastern Area (13 (part)) London and South East London North-West; London North-East; London South; South-East; Southern and Eastern (exluding Cambridge and Norwich districts) (12; 13 (part); 14; 15; 16; 17 and 18)
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment how much money has been allocated for use under the capital grants scheme to employers to adapt the workplace for disabled workers; and, of the total, how much money has been disbursed and on how many projects for each year since its inception.
§ Mr. AlisonThe information requested is as follows:
Year ending 31 March Allocation Amount disbursed Number of projects £ £ 1977–78* 500,000 11,040 26 1978–79 300,000 39,196 48 1979–80 330,000 50,090 53 1980–81 381,000 64,233 83 1981–82† 150,000 ‡38,288 ‡57 * 8 months only. † 7 months only. ‡ to 31 October.
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment how many people were employed in sheltered workshops at the latest date for which figures are available.
§ Mr. AlisonOn 31 March 1981 there were 13,839 registered severely disabled people in sheltered employment—13,593 were employed in local authority and voluntary body workshops and Remploy factories and 246 in sheltered industrial groups.
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment how many registered disabled people have been placed in employment under the job introduction scheme in each year since its inception; and, of these, how many and what percentage were still in employment (a) three months, (b) six months, (c) nine months and (d) one year later.
§ Mr. AlisonThe total numbers of registered and unregistered disabled people placed in employment under the job introduction scheme in each year since its inception on 4 July 1977 are as follows:
July-December 1977 166 1978 1,171 1979 1,585 1980 1,168 January-September 1981 945 Separate figures for placings of registered disabled people are not available.
Year by year figures of those still in employment are not collected, but an evaluation of placings made under the 259W scheme during the period 4 August 1978 to 31 October 1980 showed that of a total of 3,224 placings, 2,397–72 per cent.—were still in employment one month after the end of the trial period, and an estimated 1,930–60 per cent.—were still in employment after six months.
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list the number and percentage of registered and unregistered disabled people unemployed in each of the last 12 months for which figures are available.
§ Mr. AlisonThe numbers and percentages of registered disabled people unemployed, and the numbers of unregistered disabled people unemployed are as follows. It is not possible to calculate the percentage of unregistered disabled people unemployed.
Registered disabled people unemployed Unregistered disabled people unemployed Numbers Percentage of total disabled people on register Numbers October 1981 77,056 16.7 114,491 September 1981 75,697 16.4 114,026 August 1981 75,521 16.4 112,441 July 1981 73,105 15.9 107,901 June 1981 72,742 15.8 106,986 May 1981 72,357 15.7 103,793 April 1981 73,424 15.9 104,536 March 1981 72,183 15.3 102,965 February 1981 71,428 15.2 101,931 January 1981 70,343 14.9 100,319 December 1980 68,660 14.6 96,964 November 1980 66,887 14.2 94,657
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment what was the number and percentage increase over the last year for (a) registered disabled people, (b) unregistered disabled people and (c) total United Kingdom work force.
§ Mr. AlisonThe number of registered disabled people in Great Britain decreased by 10,410–2.2 per cent.—from 470,588 to 460,178 during the 12 months ended April 1981, the latest date available. There is no comparable information available in respect of unregistered disabled people. The total United Kingdom work force decreased by 281,000–1.5 per cent.—from 26,380,000 to 26,099,000 during the 12 months ended June 1981, the latest date available.
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will give, for the latest available date, the number of registered disabled people, the number of those unemployed and the percentage of the total that represents.
§ Mr. AlisonAt 21 April 1981, the latest date for which such information is available, there were 460,178 registered disabled people. The number of those unemployed at 8 October 1981 was 77,056, representing 16.7 per cent. of the total.
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will give, for the latest available date, the numbers of registered disabled people who are unemployed; and what percentage of total registered unemployed disabled people this represents for the 260W following categories: (a) blind, (b) totally or severely deaf, (c) epileptic, (d) mentally-handicapped and (e) mentally-ill.
§ Mr. AlisonThe information requested as at 9 April 1981, the latest available date, is as follows:
Registered disabled people unemployed Percentage of total registered disabled people unemployed (a) Blind 914 1.2 (b) Totally or severely deaf 1,658 2.2 (c) Epileptic 4,742 6.4 (d) Mentally handicapped 3,593 4.9 (e)Mentally ill 5,228 7.1 At the same date the total number of registered disabled people unemployed was 73,424.