HC Deb 08 November 1995 vol 265 cc935-6W
Mrs. Liddell

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many applicants for the jobfinder's grant have been disallowed on the ground that time spent by lone parents on an order book does not count towards the qualifying period for the grant. [40642]

Mr. Forth

I have been asked to reply.

Discretionary awards to postgraduate students England and Wales: Academic years 1991–92 to 1993–94
Number of awards Expenditure £000s (Cash terms) Expenditure £000s (Real terms)1
LEA name 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94
Corporation of London 1 2 2 8 2 8
Camden 10 40 41
Greenwich 4 5 3 25 23 16 26 23 16
Hackney 20 2 5 125 12 25 134 12 25
Hammersmith and Fulham 2 9 1 10 29 6 10 30 6
Islington 9 51 55
Kensington and Chelsea 27 27 116 113 124 117
Lambeth
Lewisham 14 8 12 74 29 36 79 30 36
Southwark 15 8 1 64 35 4 68 36 4
Tower Hamlets
Wandsworth2 11 30 31
Westminster 38 46 25 124 152 57 133 156 57
Barking and Dagenham 13 5 65 22 70 23
Barnet 49 12 28 4 29 4
Bexley 13 25 43 90 46 93
Brent 15 8 50 37 51 37
Bromley2 47 1 187 3 201 3
Croydon 5 31 24 25 26 26
Ealing 31 90 96
Enfield 25 2 54 5 58 5
Haringey
Harrow
Havering 12 49 53
Hillingdon 33 2 133 7 143 7
Hounslow 5 2 3 11 4 8 12 4 8
Kingston upon Thames 3 1 8 8

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

Letter from D. J. Lifton to Mrs. Helen Liddell, dated 8 November 1995:

The Secretary of State had asked me, in the absence of the Chief Executive, to reply to your question about the Jobfinder's Grant.We do not maintain records of lone parents claiming benefits by way of an order book who apply for a Jobfinder's Grant.The grant is targeted, in the main, at people who have been required to actively seek work for two years or more. It, therefore, precludes payments to lone parents who have received their benefit by means of an order book, since many people receiving benefit in this way will not be looking for work.I hope this is helpful.