HC Deb 14 March 1994 vol 239 cc514-5W
Mr. Redmond

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what has been the cost of administering unemployment benefit in the Doncaster area in each of the past four years; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Michael Forsyth

Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service Agency under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

Letter from M. E. G. Fogden to Mr. Martin Redmond, dated 14 March 1994. The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question concerning the cost of administering unemployment benefit in the Doncaster area over the last four years. It may be helpful if I explain that the Employment Service (ES) has responsibility for delivering a number of benefits in addition to unemployment benefit, as well as a range of other services to people seeking employment and training opportunities. Since 1990 the ES has been pursuing a policy of bringing together Unemployment Benefit offices and Jobcentres, with the aim of providing a more efficient and effective service to our clients. Individual ES staff are responsible for all aspects of ES work and it is not possible to provide accurate or meaningful breakdowns of the costs of specific activities after 1990. Therefore, I have provided figures, for the most recent years, relating to the costs of delivering the full range of our services in Doncaster. But I have additionally provided an estimated breakdown of the cost of administering unemployment benefit for you, but I must stress this is an estimate and can only be used as a guide. The figures for 1990–91 are before the Doncaster Unemployment Benefit Offices and Jobcentre costs were merged, and are actual data. The figures also exclude fixed premises costs, ie the costs of leasing and purchasing premises and the associated running costs. The various methods of collecting this information over the years makes it time consuming and costly to trace those costs relating to the Doncaster offices. Given these provisions, the relevant costs, which include staff salary and other running costs, such as fuel and telecommunications, are in the attached table. I hope this is helpful.

Year Total cost (£) Administering unemployment benefit (£)
1990–91 1,596,296 11,291,148
1991–92 2,226,527 21,424,977
1992–93 2,543,453 21,627,810
1993–943 2,754,376 21,707,713
1 Actual.
2 Estimate.
3 Projected.