§ Mr. Derek FosterTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what representations he has received from organisations participating in the294W Environmental Task Force option of the New Deal on the effect of payment in arrears on their financial viability. [29963]
§ Mr. Andrew SmithThis issue has been raised by some environmental and voluntary groups. The Chief Executive of the Employment Service has approved a system whereby voluntary organisations can seek an advance payment of part of their first year's anticipated contract value. Employment Service regional contract managers received guidance about start-up funding at the beginning of the month; the guidance was designed to provide a reasonable amount of advance funding which can be expected to be repaid during the first year of operation. In so doing, we have tried to balance the risks to Employment Service with ensuring that small voluntary organisations are not prohibited from participating in New Deal.