§ Ms BuckTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will establish website pages for each Employment Service region setting out the names and addresses of each contractor and sub-contractor supplying New Deal service contracts in each district. [61624]
§ Mr. Andrew SmithWe have no present plans to include this level of local detail on the New Deal website but I am examining how we can best use the internet for the New Deals and Employment Services more generally, and will include this suggestion in the examination. For62W now, those who wish to find out more about local provision should initially contact either the appropriate Jobcentre or the Employment Service District Manager.
§ Mr. Don FosterTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what assessment he has made of the reasons for the Employment Service's failure to meet its target for 1997–98 for placing people on Training for Work. [61075]
§ Mr. Andrew SmithThe Employment Service (ES) placed 130,600 people on training for work in 1997–98, against a target of 150,000 placings.
The assumptions on which the target was based proved mistaken in two respects. Training for Work employed status starts (which did not count towards the ES target) and direct recruitment by TECs/LECs were both higher than planned. This reduced the ability of the ES to meet its target. However, the ES share of non-employed Training for Work starts, as 81 per cent., met the Government's expectations.
Overall, the Government's target of 180,000 Training for Work starts in England was exceeded, with over 183,000 starts being achieved. This achievement would not have been possible without the strong support given to TECs/LECs by the ES.
§ Mr. Don FosterTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will list by region the number of staff employed by the Employment Service in(a) 1997–98, (b) 1996–97, (c) 1995–96 and (d) 1994–95. [61076]
§ Mr. Andrew SmithResponsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service agency under its Chief Executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Leigh Lewis to Mr. Don Foster, dated November 1998:
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question regarding the number of staff who are employed by the Employment Service, listed by region, in (a) 1997–98, (b) 1996–97, (c) 1995–96 and (d) 1994–95. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Employment Service.I have recorded below a breakdown by region and by Scotland and Wales of the number of staff in post as at 1 April for 1998, 1997, 1996 and 1995. These figures include temporary and fixed term appointees as well as permanent staff. People who are on career breaks or absent for any reason beyond three months are excluded from these figures.
Employment Service—staff in post—1 April 1995–98 Staff in post as at 1 April Region/country 1998 1997 1996 1995 Scotland 3,552 3,479 4,098 3,884 Northern 1,877 1,938 2,443 2,438 Yorkshire and the Humber 3,108 3,000 3,736 3,754 North West 4,606 4,071 5,150 4,360 East Midlands and Eastern 2,963 3,061 3,640 3,800 West Midlands 2,811 2,913 3,535 5,158 Wales 1,895 1,803 2,151 2,296 London and South East 8,163 9,530 11,326 12,304 South West 2,398 2,638 3,094 3,358 Head Office 2,155 1,741 1,983 2,027 Total 33,528 34,174 41,156 43,379 I hope this is helpful.