§ Sir Ivan LawrenceTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what measures have been introduced since 1992 to help the long-term unemployed back to work; and what assessment her Department has made of their effectiveness. [10963]
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§ Mr. ForthSince 1992, new jobs have been created and unemployment has fallen. There is clear evidence that our labour market is now more flexible and working more effectively. The UK is the only major European country with unemployment below 2 million, and long-term unemployment has fallen consistently for almost three years.
The Government's labour market policies have sought to build on this progress, and to help long-term unemployed people in particular to compete successfully for the jobs becoming available. Through the introduction of the jobseeker's allowance, Employment Service advisers can now spend more time helping each individual jobseeker. We have also introduced a number of measures to improve incentives to work, and we have maintained year by year the level of 1.5 million opportunities for unemployed people in employment and training programmes.
We have kept the range of employment and training programmes under continual review, and since 1992 have introduced a number of new measures designed to do more to help long-term unemployed people back to work. New programmes for those unemployed for one year or more have included: 1-2-1, jobplan workshops, workwise—worklink in Scotland—restart courses and the jobfinder's grant. A number of other measures have also been piloted.
The Department's programmes and pilot programmes are fully evaluated, and evidence on the comparative effectiveness of individual measures has been used to improve the balance of provision for long-term unemployed people.
In his November Budget statement, my right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a new package of employment measures to help people who have been unemployed for two years or more. We are extending project work: from February, a total of 31 project work pilots will provide help for up to 100,000 people. In addition, a new contract for work pilot initiative will explore ways in which the talents of the private sector might be used to help more very long-term unemployed people back to work.
From April, under a new jobfinder programme, people reaching two or more years unemployment will benefit from an intensive series of one-to-one interviews with an Employment Service adviser which will focus on helping the individual jobseeker back to work. We will also be making the jobmatch programme—which helps people to leave unemployment for a part-time job—available nationally to those aged under 25 who have been unemployed for two years or more; and, within the existing training for work programme, there will be new opportunities for long-term unemployed people whose job prospects can best be increased through training designed to improve their basis skills.