asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will update the reply given to the hon. Member for Norfolk, North, Official Report, 23 May 1978, c. 496, showing each of the employment and training measures to alleviate unemployment now in operation, the date when each scheme commenced, the gross and net costs, the main purpose of the scheme, the age groups covered, the number of jobs and training places provided, the weekly wage or allowance paid and whether or not the latter is taxable.
[pursuant to his reply, 6 December 1979]; The information requested is given in the schedule below.
Measure
| Date of commencement
| Cost to 30.9.79* £m.
| Purpose of scheme
| Age groups covered
| Jobs or training places provided by 31.10.79
| Weekly wage or allowances
| Whether taxed
|
| Temporary short time working compensation | 1.4.79 | 3·9 | To encourage employers to adopt short-time working instead of making people redundant. | All ages | 33,689 | 75 per cent. of normal pay | These subsidies are paid to employers: the workers concerned receive normal wages which are taxable. |
| Small firms employment subsidy | 1.7.78 | 35·0 | To create extra jobs in small manufacturing firms in the private sector in Special Development and Development Areas. | All ages | 143,529 | £20 | |
| Adult employment subsidy† | 7.8.78¶ | 0·5 | To encourage employers to recruit workers who have been unemployed for 12 months or more | 19–64 (men) | 1,501 | £20 | |
| 19–59 (women) | |||||||
| Temporary employment subsidy§ | 18.8.75¶ | 434·0 | To encourage firms to defer threatened redundancies affecting 10 or more workers. | All ages | 540,266 | £20 | |
| Short time working compensation in textiles etc. § | 15.5.78¶ | 1·6 | To encourage employers to adopt short-time working instead of making people redundant in textile, clothing and footwear sectors. | All ages | 15,072 | 75 per cent. of normal pay. | |
| Job introduction scheme | 4.7.77 | 0·4‡ | To enable employers to give certain unemployed disabled people a subsidised job trial. | All ages | 2,560 | £30 |
Measure
| Date of commencement
| Cost to 30.9.79* £m.
| Purpose of scheme
| Age groups covered
| Jobs or training places provided by 31.10.79
| Weekly wage or allowances
| Whether taxed
|
| Job release scheme | 3.1.77 | 68·0 | To enable workers approaching statutory pensionable age to give up their jobs and make way for a younger unemployed person. | 62–64 (men) | 91,382 | £31·50 (£40 with dependent spouse). | No |
| 60–64 (disabled men) | |||||||
| 59 (women) | |||||||
| Youth opportunities programme | 1.4.78 | 119·2‡ | To provide a range of opportunities for unemployed young people in training courses and work experience schemes. | Under 19 on entry | 159,000 | £23·50 | No |
| Community industry | 5.8.75 | 37·0 | To provide employment for disadvantaged young people. | Under 19 on entry | 6,209 | Local rate for | Yes |
| Special temporary employment programme | 1.4.78 | 22·0 | To provide long-term unemployed people with temporary employment on projects which benefit the community. Special Development Areas, Development Areas, designated inner city areas. | Aged 19 and over | 33,500 | Local rate for the job. | Yes |
| Training in industry | 2.7.75 | 175·0‡ | To enable industry to maintain its intake of apprentices and other long term trainees. | Young people, mainly school leavers. | 152,060 | Varies | Depends on type of payment. |
*These figures quoted are gross. Net costs are considerably less and are on average a third to a half of the gross costs due to savings on unemployment and supplementary benefits and maintenance of tax revenue and National Insurance Contributions. | |||||||
| † Some payments will continue until 29.12.79. | |||||||
| ‡ Gross costs to 31.10.79. | |||||||
| §Payments will continue on some applications until 30.3.80. | |||||||
| ║Closed for application on 10.6.79. | |||||||
| ¶Closed for applications on 31.3.79. | |||||||