§ Ms AthertonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action his Department has taken to tackle discrimination against older people. [16330]
§ Mr. BlunkettThe Home Office Older Volunteers Initiative was launched in January 1999. Its aim is to improve the quality and quantity of volunteering for those aged 50 and over. £1.5 million has been committed over three years. Eighteen projects have been completed while eight are still ongoing. As part of the initiative the Home Office's Active Community Unit has produced a resource pack, "Lifelong Action", to promote good practice in attracting and retaining older volunteers. The initiative is being evaluated by a team from the University of Surrey at Roehampton and their evaluation report is due to be published and distributed by March 2002.
Following the recommendation of the Winning the Generation Game report, the Home Office has established the Experience Corps to encourage more people aged 50 plus, specifically those aged between 50 and 65 years old, to become involved in their local community through volunteering. The Home Office is providing the 1242W Experience Corps with £19 million over three years. Formed in March 2001 and chaired by Baroness Sally Greengross, the Experience Corps is aiming to have 120,000 volunteers in place by March 2004. The company started the roll out of this initiative in the north west, north east and Yorkshire and Humberside regions in November 2001 and in the London region in January 2002. Details of the Experience Corps are at www.experiencecorps.co.uk.
The Home Office's employment policy on discrimination is set out in our equal opportunities statement. It gives the Department's commitment that staff and job applicants will not be discriminated against on the basis of any 'irrelevant factor', which would normally include age. The statement is currently being updated.