Oral question asked in the House of Commons, by Baroness May of Maidenhead (Conservative). It was answered on Monday, 14 September 2009 on behalf of the South East Regional Grand Committee.

Unemployment

Question: The reality is that the Government’s failure to act on welfare reform over 12 years meant that after years of economic boom, we went into recession with nearly 5 million people in the country on out-of-work benefits. The Minister refers to the work of the future jobs fund. Will he say how many young people in this region he expects to see getting sustainable jobs—jobs of longer than six months—as a result of that fund?

Answer: It is clear that the right hon. Lady does not support the future jobs fund. The future jobs fund is supported by [ Interruption. ] I will answer more of the right hon. Lady’s question later. Many authorities up and down the region are supporting the future jobs fund. For example, Hampshire is going to create 900 jobs and we have given it £5.85 million. If the very worst happens and a youngster does not get a job after six months, what will the situation be? They will have skills, experience and, importantly under this programme, they will have made a contribution to their community. Is that young person more likely to get a job if they have not been on that programme? I do not think so, because experience is always important for a youngster, and that is what employers talk about. I think that the right hon. Lady understands that. She is embarrassed because she has been unable to support the future jobs fund, which is regrettable, particularly given its warm welcome from Conservative authorities the length and breadth of the country, including the Local Government Association.

Secondary information