HC Deb 04 February 1993 vol 218 cc321-2W
Mr. Thurnham

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what changes she plans to her Department's cash limits or running costs limits for 1992–93.

Mrs. Gillian Shephard

Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary supplementary estimates, the following changes will be made:

The cash limit for class VI, vote 1—programmes and central services—will be reduced by £27,510,000 from £2,481,255,000 to £2,453,745,000. This reduction is mainly the net effect of lower than expected levels of expenditure on employment training and employment action programmes partly offset by increases in expenditure elsewhere on the vote, predominantly business and enterprise, training and education support and running costs (mainly for increased costs associated with the internal reorganisation of the Department and increased costs relating to higher volumes of redundancy payments). There is also an increase in expenditure on projects assisted by the European social fund offset by receipts from the European Communities, and transfers between votes.

The cash limit for class VI, vote 2—Employment Service—will be increased by a token £1,000 from £522,682,000 to £522,683,000. This is mainly the result of an increase in running costs which is chiefly in connection with the increased costs of administration of unemployment benefit payments offset by increased receipts from the Department of Social Security and, therefore, the increase will not add to the planned total of public expenditure.

The running cost limit for the Department of Employment, votes 1 and 2, will be increased by £38,484,000 from £1,205,045,000 to £1,243,529,000 for the reasons outlined above.

The cash limit for class VI, vote 3—Health and Safety Commission and Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service—will be decreased by £2,071,000 from £196,936,000 to £194,865,000. This is the result of a reduction in running costs provision to help cover increases on vote 1, partly offset by an increase of £ 150,000 from the Department of Trade and Industry to provide assistance and advice to the Bulgarian Nuclear Safety Authority.

The running costs limit for the Health and Safety Commission will be decreased by £2,056,000 from £151,774,000 to £149,718,000 and the running costs limit for the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service will be decreased by £165,000 from £21,467,000 to £21,302,000.