HL Deb 26 November 1992 vol 540 cc78-9WA
Earl Russell

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What are the "research and evaluation" referred to by the Secretary of State for Social Security in paragraph 7 of his reply to the Social Security Advisory Committee's report on the Income Support (General) Amendment (No. 3) Regulations (Cm. 2099), and what evidence in this "research and evaluation" has demonstrated a clear need to modify the legislation to curb abuse by those who claim benefits on the basis that they want to work but make no effort to do so.

Lord Henley

The Actively Seeking Work RuleAwareness, Understanding and Impact, published by Social and Community Planning Research in July 1991, Actively Seeking Work Evaluation (Research and Evaluation Branch Report No. 68), published by the Employment Service in November 1991, and Recruitment Procedures and Job Search Behaviour, published by the Institute of Manpower Studies in April 1991, are the main research studies on the actively seeking work test. Copies of these documents are available in the Library. Management information from the Employment Service and the Benefits Agency, and the results of the 1991 Labour Force Survey published in the April 1992 issue of the Employment Gazette, also provide further evidence of inadequate job search amongst a minority of unemployed people.