HC Deb 10 November 1988 vol 140 cc278-80W
Mr. Ray Powell

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list the names of the people responsible for the employment training scheme, by area.

Mr. Nicholls

The Training Agency is in the process of producing a national directory of training agents and training managers. This will list, by Training Agency area, the names and addresses of all organisations contracted to deliver employment training. The directory is due to be published in January 1989.

Mr. Ray Powell

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people employed under the community programme will transfer to the new employment training programme; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Nicholls

All people employed under the community programme prior to 5 September, and whose entitlement to the community programme continued beyond that date, are entitled to transfer to employment training. There were 170,034 filled places on community programme, excluding managers and supervisors, at 31 August. A large majority of these places transferred to employment training early in September but the precise number of these and of those who will eventually transfer is not known.

Mr. Ray Powell

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what assessment he has made of the effect of switching of responsibility of training to local employer networks on employment training.

Mr. Nicholls

There has been no switch of responsibility of training to local employer networks on employment training.

Ms. Short

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment whether an employer who is providing them with a work placement as part of their training will be allowed to require employment training scheme trainees to(a) do overtime, (b) work unsocial hours or (c) work on Saturdays or Sundays; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Nicholls

The hours of attendance of employment training trainees on placements should be in line with the normal hours worked by the provider's own employees. Trainees should not, however, be required to attend for any periods which normally attract overtime or premium payments for employees, nor should they be required to attend on Sundays or bank holidays, unless that is normal for the firm or industry concerned.

Ms. Short

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what steps the Training Commission will be taking to ensure that the employment training scheme trainees are not given work experience placements which substitute for or displace normal jobs; if he will ensure that no employer who has declared redundancies in the preceding two years can take on the employment training scheme trainees in the work areas or sections affected by those redundancies; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Nicholls

Providers of employment training places are required to offer a properly planned and structured programme of training for all trainees. It is for training managers and practical training providers to try to ensure that ET placements have the support of their employees so that there is an environment conducive to good training. For many employers this will involve following their normal industrial relations practices and procedures.

This requirement will safeguard against job substitution and any employer may seek to participate in employment training whether or not they have declared redundancies in the past.

Ms. Short

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what safeguards he is taking to ensure that claimants, or their parents, are no worse off from participating in the employment training scheme; what will be the position, and what advice he will give, to claimants who(a) are receiving payments from insurance agreements to cover mortgage and hire purchase payments which could be affected by their change in status from unemployed claimant to trainees or (b) are living as dependants with someone else who is claiming housing benefit as head of household, where that head of household's benefit may be affected by the change in the trainee's status from unemployed claimant to trainee; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Nicholls

We are concerned that some insurance companies may withdraw mortgage protection cover from people joining employment training. The terms of insurance policies are, of course, for individuals and their insurers. However, the Association of British Insurers has written to its members, asking them to do all they can to ensure that people joining employment training do not forfeit this protection.

Dependants of people in receipt of housing benefit may join employment training without this having any effect on the level of housing benefit in payment.

Ms. Short

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will estimate the net Exchequer cost of removing an employment training scheme trainee from the unemployment register; if he will give the basis of that calculation; and what is the latest estimate of the net Exchequer cost of the community programme of removing a participant from the unemployment register.

Mr. Nicholls

In 1987–88 the net Exchequer cost of removing a community programme participant from the unemployment register was approximately £2,400. No comparable estimate for the employment training programme is available at present.

Mr. Leighton

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many places there are on the Birmingham city council ET scheme; and how many entrants are in place so far.

Mr. Nicholls

Birmingham city council has an employment training contract which builds up to 3,000 places by March 1989. As at 28 October, nearly 700 places were filled by former community programme participants and, in addition, there have been 160 entrants to the new programme.

Mr. Leighton

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many trainees have entered ET.

Mr. Nicholls

In the first eight weeks of employment training about 52,000 people entered training.

Mr. Hayward

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how much is to be spent on employment training within Greater London.

Mr. Nicholls

The information is not available in the form requested. However, the planned expenditure (excluding income support) for the London region up to the end of March 1989 is £20 million.