To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people had their unemployment benefit stopped because they were considered to be not available for work in the periods (a) January, five weeks, and (b) February, four weeks; and what percentage these were of the total number of decisions made by the adjudicating officers in the two periods.

Information is not readily available about the number of persons who have their entitlement to unemployment benefit disallowed because they are considered not to be available for work in the periods January and February, and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.However, in the six-month period ending 31 December 1987 the total number of claims for unemployment benefit disallowed by the adjudication officer, on the grounds of not being available for work was 50,588. This totalled 8·3 per cent. of all the claims disallowed by the adjudication officers during the period.