§ Mr. AlexanderTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many employers in Paisley, South, or the nearest available geographical unit, have agreed to take on one or more subsidised employees from the New Deal for 18 to 24-year-olds in each month since January 1998; and how many employers have654W agreed to take their first subsidised employee from the New Deal scheme for 18 to 24-year-olds in each month since January 1998. [128737]
§ Ms JowellThe information is not available in the form requested but we do have aggregate information for the Johnstone and Paisley jobcentre catchment areas. Since April 1998, when the New Deal for young people was introduced nationally, a total of 237 employers have signed New Deal agreements and many of these have taken on one or more subsidised employees. Many employers signing agreements will also have taken on young people into unsubsidised jobs and in the Paisley, South constituency as a whole, over 400 young people have found jobs under the New Deal. This is a significant contribution to our manifesto commitment to help 250,000 young people into jobs through the New Deal.
§ Mr. AlexanderTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what recent research he has carried out into the reasons for those in the New Deal scheme leaving the scheme prematurely. [128736]
§ Ms JowellThe purpose of New Deal is to move people swiftly into jobs and the design of New Deal enables young people to leave from all stages of the process to take jobs or for other reasons. Those that return to Jobseeker's allowance within three months go back on to New Deal at the point they left. However, young people do leave the process without telling us where they are going. They are under no obligation to do so but we are naturally concerned to know more about their circumstances. As a result we commissioned a study in 1999 which told us that 57 per cent. of leavers went into jobs and 8 per cent. into training. A second survey of leavers to unknown destinations from all three stages of the New Deal for Young People is currently under way.
§ Mr. AllanTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment which parliamentary constituencies fall within which New Deal units of delivery. [129461]
§ Ms JowellThere is no neat fit between New Deal Units of Delivery and parliamentary constituencies. It is for this reason that quarterly New Deal statistics for each parliamentary constituency have been produced and placed in the Libraries alongside those on a Unit of Delivery basis. A list of Units of Delivery and those parliamentary constituencies that fall, all or for the most part, within their boundaries is contained in the table, copies of which have been placed in the Libraries.