Brown to unveil plans to boost UK jobs
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown will set out measures today designed to find jobs for 500,000 British workers, bringing the UK closer to full employment than before.
Mr Brown will use his first speech to the TUC Congress as Prime Minister to speak of his plans to achieve the aspiration of “a British job for every British worker”.
He will set out details of a scheme, unveiled yesterday by Home Secretary Jacqui Smith, to make more migrants from outside the European Union pass English language tests before being allowed to work in the UK.
And he will set out plans to expand an employment partnership scheme linking major employers with local JobCentres.
Ministers will also examine measures to fast-track lone parents and others who have been outside the job market for extended periods back into work, he will tell delegates at the TUC conference in Brighton.
This could include:
:: A new guarantee of an interview for an available job for every lone parent;
:: A new £400 training allowance to help employers train up “fast-track” recruits;
:: An extension from 15 to 42 days of the period after starting work that lone parents can continue to receive benefits;
:: A nationwide back-to-work credit worth £40 a week, or £60 in London.
Young people who left school this summer are also set to be offered a guarantee of a place on a pre-apprenticeship course or in college by the end of this month, and all teenagers will be approached to make sure they are taking up training opportunities.
Mr Brown will say that, despite 340,00 more young people being in work than in 1997, he believes there are still too many over-16s who are not in education, training or work.
A Downing Street spokesman said: “In total, the government believes that if we are able to implement all of these measures, an extra 500,000 British jobs could be created for British workers.”
The spokesman added: “The Prime Minister believes that, with jobs today available for more than 30 million people in the country, we can – if we make the right decisions – advance closer to full employment than ever before in our history, so that there is a British job for every British worker.
“That is why he has been working with (Work and Pensions Secretary) Peter Hain and (Chancellor) Alistair Darling to bring forward a package of measures to fast-track British workers into the vacancies available in the economy.”
Ms Smith yesterday revealed plans to extend a requirement on non-EU migrants to pass GCSE-standard English language tests before coming to work in the UK.
The language requirement which currently applies to highly-skilled workers is to be extended to all skilled workers, and ministers will launch a review to consider including the low-skilled as well.
Government sources have indicated that around 35,000 of the 95,000 skilled non-EU migrants who came to the UK last year to work would have failed an English test.
But Ms Smith yesterday dodged repeated questions on whether the aim of the policy was to cut immigrant numbers.
Asked by BBC interviewer Andrew Marr “Do you want to slow the flow of migrants coming into the country or not?”, she responded: “I want to make sure that the flow of migrants coming into the country are coming in a way that’s going to benefit the UK.”
Conservative immigration spokesman Damian Green accused Ms Smith of “wriggling” and said the change would amount only to “a relatively minor measure” unless it leads to a cut in the numbers of people coming to the UK.
Mr Brown will today say he hopes to increase to 200, from the current 64, the number of major employers taking part in Local Employment Partnerships with JobCentre Plus, which commit them to take on, train and offer jobs to British men and women who are inactive or unemployed.
High-profile firms like Sainsburys and Primark from the retail sector, HBOS and RBS in banking and finance and Travelodge and Compass in hospitality are already signed up to the scheme, which also covers construction jobs related to the 2012 London Olympics.
“Discussions with employers are now under way which would take the total to 200,” said the Downing Street spokesman.
“The Prime Minister believes that in total this measure alone could result in an extra 250,000 new jobs for British workers.”
Employers cautioned against raising too many barriers for foreign workers wanting to come to the UK.
David Frost, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, said: “In recent years migrant workers to the UK have ensured the continued growth of the economy, possessing a work ethic and skill level that many young British people just do not have.
“Of course language skills are important, but I would be concerned if this meant that those who want to work and help our economy grow are kept out of the country and take their skills and talent elsewhere.”
And Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Nick Clegg said: “Whilst it is obvious that the use of English can help new entrants into the UK integrate into our society, this looks suspiciously like a headline-grabbing announcement which begs as many questions as it provides answers.”
