asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many intended courses were recently cancelled in Scottish technical colleges; and how many potential students subsequently became unemployed.

Information of this kind is not collected centrally, but I understand that 23 full-time and 120 part-time courses at colleges in the area of Strathclyde regional council have had to be cancelled following the introduction of new conditions of service for further education teachers. A total of 16 courses have been cancelled in other local authority colleges in Scotland for other reasons, chiefly insufficient student demand. Information on the number of potential students who became unemployed following the cancellation of courses in Strathclyde is not available.