HC Deb 24 April 1995 vol 258 cc351-2W
Mr. McCartney

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if, in cases where jobseeker's allowance claimants do not have right of appeal, this will be made explicit when the agreement is being drawn up and before the claimant is required to sign.

Miss Widdecombe

[holding answer 6 February 1995]: There will be no circumstances in which the claimant will not have the right to ask for his case to be reconsidered, by way of either review or appeal. The conditions under which a claimant is entitled to benefit, and the consequences of failure to meet those conditions, will, however, be made clear to the claimant when the agreement is being drawn up at the beginning of his claim.

Ms Short

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many days' training will be given to(a) adjudication officers and (b) Employment Service advisers about the requirements and procedures associated with the jobseeker's allowance prior to its introduction in April 1996; what timetable will be followed to ensure that all the appropriate staff will receive the training prior to the date of implementation; and if he will make a statement. [19754]

Miss Widdecombe

A wide variety of modular training courses, based on a detailed analysis of training needs, are being developed for staff who are to deliver the jobseeker's allowance, depending on the duties that they are to perform. Current plans are that existing, trained adjudication officers in the Employment Service will receive five days training on JSA rules and their effect on adjudication procedures. Existing, trained ES advisers will receive 16 days training which will cover additional interviewing skills, use of new IT systems and policy and procedural changes arising from the introduction of JSA. All the training needed to ensure that JSA is delivered effectively will take place before April 1996, but training courses will continue to be run after that date to help staff further develop their knowledge and skills, as part of an overall move towards multi-skilling. Training for managers has already started and training for all staff will run from now until well into 1996.