§ Mr. Spellerasked the Paymaster General if he will seek power to allow rural Manpower Services Commission agencies to receive a higher operating cost allowance than urban based agencies.
§ Mr. Spellerasked the Paymaster General if he will seek powers to allow the Manpower Services Commission wage structure to move automatically in line with the appropriate trade unions settlement.
§ Mr. LeeNo. On the assumption that my hon. Friend is concerned with the community programme, participants already receive the local agreed hourly rate for the job. The MSC reimburses sponsors and agents for wages up to an average of £67 per week per participant.
§ Mr. Spellerasked the Paymaster General if he will seek power to allow Manpower Services Commission assets acquired for any particular project to be written off over the effective life of the asset rather than the life of the project.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeIt is not necessary for me to seek the power suggested, as the Manpower Services Commission presently operates a policy of writing off assets it has acquired over their estimated effective life.
For assets purchased with MSC funds for use on a project, the Manpower Services Commission satisfies itself as to the propriety of the accounting policies adopted by the project organisers. Such policies can include writing off an asset over its effective life.
§ Mr. Spellerasked the Paymaster General if he will seek powers to separate Manpower Services Commission funding between training costs and those of operating and Wages.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeIt is not necessary for me to seek the powers suggested as the Manpower Services Commission presently operates on this basis. Training programme costs are identified separately from the cost of their administration.