§ Mr. Skinnerasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the specific improvements his Department intends to make on the monitoring of abuses occurring in the youth opportunities programme.
§ Mr. Peter MorrisonThe Manpower Services Commission already monitors very carefully any potential abuses of the youth opportunities programme.
§ Mr. Sproatasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the action by the Civil and. Public Services Association which has prevented the Manpower Services Commission from taking on entrants under the youth opportunities programme.
§ Mr. Peter MorrisonI deplore the resolution passed at this year's conference of the Civil and Public Services Association, which reaffirmed its existing policy on non-co-operation with the programme and instructed its union executive to withdraw from all negotiations with the Manpower Services Commission concerning the setting up of schemes in the Civil Service.
§ Mr. Colvinasked the Secretary of State for Employment what is his Department's estimate of the additional net cost to the Government in the current financial year of replacing the "Easter undertaking" to youth opportunities programme entrants with a "Christmas undertaking".
§ Mr. Peter MorrisonNo separate exercise to estimate the different costings of an Easter rather than a Christmas undertaking has been attempted and could not be done except at disproportionate cost.
§ Mr. Colvinasked the Secretary of State for Employment what have been the numbers of entrants to the youth opportunities programme, broken down by types of project, each year since the programme started.
§ Mr. Peter MorrisonThe following table shows the number of entrants tothe youth opportunities programme each year by scheme type:
130W
Entrants to the Youth Opportunities Programe 1 April 1978 to 31 March 1979 1 April 1979 to 31 March 1980 1 April 1980 to 31 March 1981 Work experience Work Experience on Employers' Premises 108,400 138,900 242,200 Project Based Work Experience 8,400 15,200 20,100 Community Service 7,600 20,700 30,200 Training Workshops 3,800 7,300 12,000
Entrants to the Youth Opportunities Pragramme 1 April 1978 to 31 March 1979 1 April 1979 to 31 March 1980 1 April 1980 to 31 March 1981 Total Work Experience 128,200 182,100 304,500 Work Preparation Employment Induction Courses 2,400 3,000 4,100 Short Training Courses 30,900 29,300 *51,400 Remedial/ Preparatory Courses 700 2,000 Total Work Preparation 34,000 34,300 55,500 Note'. *Short training courses and remedial/preparatory courses are now counted together for statistical purposes.
§ Mr. Fosterasked the Secretary of State for Employment (1) how much money has been allocated by the Manpower Services Commission to local education authorities in respect of capital projects to assist their contribution to the youth opportunities programme in each year since the programme's inception;
(2) if he will detail the capital amounts allocated to each local education authority by the Manpower Services Commission in respect of its contribution to the youth opportunities programme for each year since the programme's inception;
(3) if he will detail the payments made to each local education authority by the Manpower Services Commission in respect of its contributions to the youth opportunities programme for each year since the programme's inception.
§ Mr. Peter MorrisonI shall reply to the hon. Member as soon as possible.