§ Sir Ralph HowellTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what assessment he has made of the effect of the provision in the Jobseekers Bill regarding penalties in respect of leaving employment after three months on the willingness of jobseekers to remain in employment.
§ Miss WiddecombeUnemployed people should be encouraged to try work that may be unfamiliar to them. The employment on trial rule therefore exempts certain claimants from sanction if they take a job and then give it up within a specified period. We regard it as important that this incentive should apply at the point at which claimants are expected to consider work outside their usual occupations. For this reason, in jobseeker's allowance the rule will apply after three months' unemployment, which is the maximum permitted period during which search for jobs can be restricted to the claimant's usual occupation.