Access to Work Scheme (Hansard, 29 October 1996)

§ Mr. Alan Howarth
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what is her latest estimate of(a) the cost and (b) the number receiving assistance through the access to work scheme; and of these how many are (i) unemployed; (ii) employees and (iii) self-employed. [414]

§ Mr. Forth
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 M. E. G. Fogden to Mr. Alan Howarth, dated 29 October 1996: The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question about the estimated cost and numbers receiving assistance through Access to Work, and the numbers who are unemployed, employed and self-employed. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency. For the period April to September 1996, £6.5m has been spent and a further £6m is already committed to be spent. During this period we helped 1,452 new beneficiaries of whom 666 were unemployed, 701 were employed and 85 were self employed. About 4,200 others continue to receive help agreed before April. I hope this is helpful.

§ Mr. Howarth
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what is her estimate of the cost of removing the employer and self-employed contributions payable under the access to work scheme. [415]

§ Mr. Forth
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 M. E. G. Fogden to Mr. Alan Howarth, dated 29 October 1996: The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question about the estimated cost of removing the cost sharing element of Access to Work. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency. It is too early to say what expenditure on Access to Work will be this year and consequently what would be the effect of returning to a situation in which the Employment Service paid all approved costs. However, the demand for Access to Work in 1995–96 was such that, in spite of restrictions from December 1995 on the help given to employed and self-employed people, expenditure exceeded the budget by some £6 million. Growth on this scale indicated that expenditure in 1996–97 would have exceeded the budget available leading to restrictions again having to be imposed on applications. Employed and self-employed people have been eligible for help since 1 June, and the introduction of cost sharing means that this year's allocation of £19 million will ensure that help continues to be available to those who most need it. I hope this is helpful.