To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people in the borough of Rochdale have been unemployed for more than a year.

Information on claimant unemployment by duration is available quarterly and on the unadjusted basis only.In April 1993, in the Rochdale local authority district, there were 3,586 claimants who had been unemployed for more than one year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the measures taken to reduce unemployment in the 18 to 25 years age group.

All unemployed people in the 18 to 25 years age group are eligible, subject to qualifying criteria, for the full range of employment, enterprise and training measures available through the employment service, training and enterprise councils and local enterprise companies. This is in addition to the advice and placement help which the employment service offers all unemployed people through its job centre network.