North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood has called on the First Minister to respond to concerns that the Welsh Government’s employability programmes are now not projected to begin until April 2019.
Mr Isherwood is concerned that unless the Welsh Government acts now, it will be forced to rely on external companies coming into Wales to provide the services.
Speaking in the Chamber yesterday, he said:
“As you’ll be aware, the UK Government’s ‘Work and Health Programme’ in Wales is currently out to tender, forecast to reach 16,000 disabled people, those with health conditions, or those out of work for more than two years, although there are 270,000 economically inactive people in Wales, excluding students and pensioners, according to Welsh Government figures.
“How will you address concerns expressed to me that the Welsh Government’s Employability Programmes, which we will hear more about later, are currently, we understand, not projected to begin until April 2019, having slipped a year, and, further, that there will be only one Prime Contractor left operating in Wales, despite the Welsh Government’s statement that it wants to use multiple suppliers, and that if it doesn’t act now it will be forced to rely on external companies coming into Wales to provide those services? Finally, in this context, will you address the statement to the Cross-Party Group on Industrial Communities today by the Bevan Foundation that, in terms of employability, we need a one-stop shop, with ‘wiring of schemes behind the scenes in a seamless service’, whether they’re UK, Wales, or third sector?.”
The First Minister confirmed that “we’re looking to commence delivery of our new programme in April of 2019”.
The Minister for Skills and Science later made a Statement on Employability in the Chamber.
Commenting after, Mr Isherwood said:
“The First Minister failed to address concern over who will deliver the programme, and with the start of the programme having already slipped a year, there is a lack of confidence that it won’t slip further.
“Further, the later Statement on Employability by the Minister for Skills and Science said only that the programme “is ‘expected’ to begin delivery in April 2019” and that “we want to influence future DWP Programmes and to shape how DWP works within Wales” – a bit late, given that the DWP ‘Work and Health Programme’ replacing the UK ‘Work Programme’ and ‘Work Choice’ Programmes in Wales has already gone out to tender.”