§ Mr. ClappisonTo ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many staff have been(a) redeployed and (b) retrained as a result of the introduction of Jobcentre Plus; and what his estimate is of the costs incurred by his Department in undertaking retraining programmes. [33507]
§ Mr. Nicholas BrownApproximately 4.000 staff are employed in the 56 Jobcentre Plus pathfinder offices that have opened since October 2001. The majority of these staff were perviously employed by either the Employment Service or the Benefits Agency. All have received some Jobcentre Plus specific training. The amount of training delivered to individual members of staff was largely dependent on their background and experience. The estimated cost of designing, implementing and delivering Jobcentre Plus training for all Jobcentre Plus pathfinder staff is £5 million.