Training

HC Deb 16 December 1988 vol 143 cc741-2W

Mr. Janner

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what percentage of trainees in companies, employing 100 or more YTS trainees, in(a) the United Kingdom, (b) the east midlands region and (c) Leicestershire, are from (i) the Afro-Caribbean community, (ii) the Asian community and (iii) ethnic minorities in general.

Mr. Cope

The information is not available in the form requested. Percentages of YTS trainees from Afro-Caribbean, Asian and all ethnic minorities in employer-led schemes are given in the table.

Percentages of YTS trainees stating their ethnic origin as being from Afro-Caribbean, Asian and all ethnic minorities in employer-led schemes at 31 March 1988.

	Afro-Caribbean Per cent.	Asian Per cent.	Total ethnic minorities Per cent.
Great Britain	1.1	1.1	2.6
East midlands	0.8	1.0	2.3
Leicester	1.1	2.4	4.4

Mr. Frank Field

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many local authorities are co-operating with employment training; and how many authorities and other public employers are known to the Training Agency to be boycotting employment training.

Mr. Nicholls

Contracts have been signed with 55 local authorities to be training agents and with 176 local authorities to be training managers. In addition, many other local authorities are involved as members of consortia or as subcontractors to training managers. We are aware of a small number of local authorities which are boycotting the programme or campaigning against it.

Mr. Frank Field

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what proportion and number of trainees on employment training had either been offered or undertaken work placements by early December.

Mr. Nicholls

I refer the hon. Member to the reply to his earlier question on 28 November at column114.

Mr. Frank Field

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what effect the decision by a number of Labour-controlled local authorities to boycott employment training has had on (a) the number of work placements available to trainees and (b) the overall quality of the programme.

Mr. Nicholls

The opposition to employment training by some Labour-controlled local authorities has had no long-term effect on the number of training places available to trainees and has not impeded the development of good quality training.

However, the opposition to employment training by a small number of local authorities has in some cases unncessarily restricted opportunities for training, particularly in some inner city areas where co-operation by local authority is important in helping to secure access to suitable premises for training activities. I very much regret that in a small number of such cases the deplorable attitude of Labour local authorities is making it more difficult than necessary for long term unemployed people to undertake the quality training they need and want to get back into a job.