§ 21. Mr. BoyesTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what provision his Department has made for the provision of employment training and YTS under the training and enterprise councils.
§ Mr. EggarThe Training Agency will contract with training and enterprise councils to deliver employment training and YTS in their areas.
§ 23. Mr. Gerald BowdenTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many areas have now made applications to set up training and enterprise councils.
§ Mr. FowlerTo date, 40 applications for development funding from prospective training and enterprise councils have been received by the national training task force. A table that lists the areas from which applications have been received has been placed in the House of Commons Library.
§ 30. Mr. BrazierTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what progress is being made in establishing training and enterprise councils in the south-east; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. NichollsI have been very encouraged by the excellent response from employers in the south-east and throughout the country to our invitation to form training and enterprise councils. Some 40 groups of senior employers from around the country have applied for development funding of which six are from employer groups in the south-east.
§ 52. Mr. Tony LloydTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment how his Department will monitor the spending of public funds by the training and enterprise councils.
§ Mr. NichollsTraining and enterprise councils will be required to submit an income and expenditure account for each programme funded by my Department at the end of every four-week accounting period. In addition, TECs will be required to submit a balance sheet showing their financial position at the end of each accounting period.
§ 53. Dame Janet FookesTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what progress is being made in establishing training and enterprise councils in the west country; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. NichollsMy right hon. Friend has been very encouraged by the excellent response from employers in the west country and throughout the country to our invitation to form training and enterprise councils.
Some 40 groups of senior employers from around the country have applied for development funding, of which four are from employer groups in the Training Agency's south-west region.
§ 48. Mr. Tom ClarkeTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment how he intends to ensure that training and enterprise councils provide a uniform quality of training provision throughout the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. NichollsIn England and Wales, training and enterprise councils will arrange training provision within a broad national framework, to suit local circumstances. The TECs will be required to set out their strategy for156W delivering quality training in their corporate and business plans. In Scotland, local enterprise companies will have similar arrangements for ensuring quality training.
§ 58. Mr. Brandon-BravoTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what progress is being made in establishing training and enterprise councils in the east midlands; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. NichollsMy right hon. Friend has been very encouraged by the excellent response from employers in the east midlands and throughout the country to our invitation to form training and enterprise councils.
Some 40 groups of senior employers from around the country have applied for development funding, of which three are from employer groups in the Training Agency's east midlands and eastern region.
§ 60. Mr. SoamesTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what progress has been made in establishing training and enterprise councils; and if he will make a statement.
§ 93. Mr. HaselhurstTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what progress is being made in establishing training and enterprise councils; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. NichollsMy right hon. Friend has been very encouraged by the excellent response from employers throughout the country to our invitation to form training and enterprise councils.
A total of 40 groups of senior employers in England and Wales have applied for development funding, of which 31 have been approved; the table lists the areas from which we have had applications and indicates their status.
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List of training and enterprise councils that have applied for development funding at 23 October Status South East Milton Keynes Approved Hertfordshire Approved Essex Approved Hampshire Approved Isle of Wight Approved Thames Valley Approved London Kingston/Merton Approved London East Under consideration South West Devon/Cornwall Approved Dorset Approved Somerset Approved Avon Under consideration West Midlands Birmingham Approved Walsall Approved Staffordshire Approved Coventry/Warwickshire Under consideration Dudley Under consideration East Midlands and Eastern North Nottinghamshire Approved Norfolk/Waveney Approved Suffolk Under consideration Yorkshire and Humberside Sheffield Approved Calderdale/Kirklees Approved North Yorkshire Approved
Status Rotherham Approved North West Cumbria Approved East Lancashire Approved Rochdale Approved Oldham Approved South and East Cheshire Approved Wigan Approved Manchester Under consideration Stockport/High Peak Under consideration Northern Teeside Approved Tyneside Approved Wearside Approved County Durham Under consideration Northumberland Under consideration Wales Mid Glamorgan Approved North East Wales Approved West Wales Approved
§ 77. Ms. MowlamTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment how training and enterprise councils will respond to the interests of small firms and voluntary organisations within the local community.
§ Mr. NichollsTraining and enterprise councils will be expected to undertake a comprehensive assessment of local market needs to enable them to draw up their corporate and business plans. Consultation with a range of organisations and individuals, including employers of all sizes and voluntary organisations, will be vital to this assessment.
§ 90. Mr. LordTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what progress is being made in establishing training and enterprise councils in East Anglia; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. NichollsMy right hon. Friend has been very encouraged by the excellent response from employers in East Anglia and throughout the country to our invitation to form training and enterprise councils. A total of 40 groups of senior employers in England and Wales have applied for development funding, of which three are from the East Anglia area.
§ 95. Mr. WallerTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the small business support programmes of the training and enterprise councils.
§ Mr. NichollsTraining and enterprise councils will be directly responsible for the major current programmes which help small firms and promote self-employment. These include the enterprise allowance scheme, business growth training, enterprise in employment training and counselling for small firms in England. Some training and enterprise councils are also being invited to run elements of the Department of Trade and Industry's enterprise initiative. The councils will also be able to use their local initiative fund to strengthen and expand existing programmes and services or to finance new initiatives to support business growth and enterprise.