Written question asked by Lord Boswell of Aynho (Conservative) on Thursday, 10 November 2005, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 14 November 2005. It was answered by Baroness Hodge of Barking (Labour) on Monday, 12 December 2005 on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.

Jobcentre Plus

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the latest estimate is of the cost of rolling out the Jobcentre Plus programme; what the annual running cost will be; and what the cost of running Jobcentre offices was in the last year of their operation.

Answer: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. She will write to the hon. Member.Letter from Lesley Strathie, dated 12 December 2005:"The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question concerning: the latest estimate of the cost of rolling out the Jobcentre Plus programme; what the annual running cost will be; and what the cost of running Jobcentre offices was in the last year of their operation. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.""The latest cost estimate for completion of the rollout programme is just in excess of £2 billion against an original budget of £2.2 billion. The latest estimate of the running costs for the whole of Jobcentre Plus for 2005–06 is £2,592 million. The latest estimate on the annual savings on running costs that can be expected once the rollout programme is completed amounts to £20 million per annum.""Running costs are not monitored at the level of individual Jobcentre offices so I am unable to answer the final question raised. The information is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.""I hope this is helpful."

Secondary information