§ Mr. WillettsTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what discussions his Department has had with the European Commission on the compatibility of the unemployment subsidy in the new deal with EU competition policy. [26224]
§ Mr. Andrew SmithThe European Commission's guidelines on aid to employment published in 1995 make clear that the Commission is generally sympathetic towards measures which are intended to encourage firms to recruit individuals who have difficulty finding work.
Officials from the Department will be meeting officials from the Commission to inform them about the new deal and answer any questions the Commission may wish to raise.
§ Mr. WillettsTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment when the Government proposes to extend the new deal from 18 to 24-year-olds to 25 to 34-year-olds. [26226]
§ Mr. Andrew SmithI announced on 5 January that we would develop pilots, for introduction in the autumn, with a view to extending the new deal to people over 25 who have been unemployed for a year or 18 months. These will need to be thoroughly evaluated before decisions can be taken on the time or nature of a full extension.