§ Mr. AllenTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many university students his Department and associated agencies have supported or sponsored with a work placement in the last year; what his policy is on work placements; what plans he has to develop such schemes; and what his policy is on paying their university fees. [98537]
§ Ruth KellyA total of 104 university students undertook a work or training placement in one of the Chancellor's Departments and agencies in the last year1.
Under the Civil Service Commissioners Code, policies and plans on recruitment and work placements are delegated to individual departments and agencies. For example, these range from a plan by HM Treasury to continue to provide 'sandwich' work placements for students studying for economics or IT degrees, and to offer two summer development training placements in 2003; to plans by the Inland Revenue to offer up to 40 summer development training placements, four Windsor Fellowship placements, two placements for disabled students, and 10 internship placements this summer.
The Chancellor's departments and agencies do not contribute towards university fees, but provide paid work placements instead.
1The answer includes figures from HM Treasury, Inland Revenue, Customs and Excise, Office of Government Commerce, Debt Management Office, Valuation Office, Government Actuary's Department, Department of National Savings and Investments, and the Office of National Statistics, for students who began their placements during the period February 2002 to February 2003.