HC Deb 26 April 1988 vol 132 cc107-8W
Mr. Leighton

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what response he has made to the report of the docklands liaison group of the DE-Manpower Services Commission of October 1987; and if he intends to implement recommendation 3.6 of the report.

Mr. Nicholls

The docklands liaison group report on employment and training services in docklands was prepared for regional management in the Employment Service and the Manpower Services Commission.

With regard to recommendation 3.6 of the report, the Employment Service accepts the need to improve the accessibility of its services to unemployed people in some parts of London docklands.

We are examining the possibility of relocating the Isle of Dogs jobcentre from its current sit in the Cubitt Town library building. But in the meantime we shall be looking to maintain the best possible service to local residents from that site.

We have set up a new-style office at Bermondsey to locate all our services for unemployed people together in one place. In order to bring the opportunities available in docklands to a greater number of people, we are considering a range of outreach measures, including: —a mobile facility to take services and information about vacancies and other employment and training opportunities to local communities, and —the use of new technology to provide a wider network of information points, giving access to details of job and training opportunities, across the whole area.

Mr. Leighton

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the budget of the docklands liaison group; and if any additional resources to fund the work of the group have been made available.

Mr. Nicholls

The docklands liaison group acts as a single contact point to enable the Employment Service and the Manpower Services Commission to co-ordinate their programmes and services with other interested bodies and the private sector in London docklands. Sufficient funding for this task is made available from the local budgets of the Employment Service and the MSC.

In 1987–88 the Manpower Services Commission spent around £17.3 million on training-related programmes in the docklands boroughs. The Employment Service has a network of nine jobcentres and six benefit offices in the docklands area, employing 280 staff at a cost of about £2.8 million in the last financial year.