§ Mr. Les Huckfieldasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what guidance he has given either regionally or nationally to his Department's staff with regard to the payment of unemployment benefit to those who participate in voluntary redundancy schemes.
§ Mr. RossiAs the hon. Member will know, a person claiming unemployment benefit is liable to be disqualified for receiving benefit for up to six weeks if he left his employment voluntarily without just cause. Any question whether a person left voluntarily and whether, if so, he had just cause for doing so is for decision by the independent statutory authorities appointed to decide claims for benefit. Situations involving what may be described as "voluntary redundancy" are likely to raise such questions for decision.
I understand that staff of the Department of Employment in unemployment benefit offices are instructed to refer claims raising such questions to the insurance officer—the first of those adjudicating authorities—for decision. Those instructions are of long standing and have not been altered recently; there is no reason to do so. Neither my right hon. Friends nor I have any power to issue guidance to the adjudicating authorities on the exercise of their powers.