§ Mr. Tony LloydTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people are employed in his Department's Training Agency; and if he will give a breakdown of their main responsibilities.
§ Mr. LeeOn 1 June 1989, the latest date for which figures are available, the numbers of permanent staff employed in the Department's Training Agency were 11,893. Of these, 9,501 (including 2,623 Skills Training Agency staff) were employed in field offices on delivery and
72Wcaused a 50 per cent. reduction in the average length of attendance at employment rehabilitation centres; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. NichollsThe average length of stay of all clients in ERCs has reduced because many more people are finding short courses of assessment and guidance are meeting their needs. However, in 1989 the length of stay on rehabilitation courses was 35 days and has remained consistent over the last five years. I am also pleased to report that the number of people helped by the ERS has increased from 12,000 in 1984–85 to about 26,000 in 1988–89.
§ Mr. AshleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the future of the employment rehabilitation centres which share sites with skillcentres, when the Skills Training Agency is moved into the private sector.
§ Mr. LeeThe employment rehabilitation service, which includes employment rehabilitation centres, will continue. Contingency plans are being drawn up for individual centres on shared sites which may be affected in varying degrees by the move of the Skills Training Agency into the private sector.
§ Mr. ThorntonTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many letters and representations he has received concerning the future of the construction industry training board and its statutory levy since the publication of his paper "Employment for the 1990s".
§ Mr. NichollsA total of 253 letters and representations have been received by my Department.