§ Mr. FatchettTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment whether he has any plans to reduce(a) the number of managing agents for youth training schemes and (b) the number of youth training schemes; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. CopeThe Training Agency's area offices negotiate contracts with managing agents to provide sufficient YTS places to meet the needs in each locality. As the number of young people eligible for YTS falls over the next few years, the overall number of schemes and of managing agents may well need to be adjusted. Any such adjustments will be made locally, to match local requirements.
§ Mr. Frank FieldTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment whether he will make a statement on the decision of some local authorities to boycott employment training.
§ Mr. Nicholls[holding answer 22 December 1988]: Employment training has made a very successful start with more than 100,000 people already in training, in many cases with the help of local authorities. About 170 local authorities are already acting as training managers and 50 acting as training agents for the scheme.
I very much regret that certain Labour controlled local authorities have decided actively to oppose and boycott employment training. This deplorable stance serves only to distance those local authorities from the needs of the unemployed people in their communities. A recent High Court decision made it clear that Liverpool city council had been using its discretionary powers unlawfully to 701W penalise organisations taking part in employment training. I trust that other authorities will take careful note of that judgment in framing their policies for the future.