Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government is currently consulting with a range of partners on the best use of the additional funding. Future skills demand will feature in these discussions.

The Scottish Government is convening a special session of the National Economic Forum on 1 February to explore with a wide range of partners and stakeholders how to maximise the effectiveness of this new resource. This builds on a strategic roundtable discussion with representatives of local authorities, the third sector, college sector and private sector employers on 15 December to consider this same issue. I am also planning to consult with a range of employers and other stakeholders ahead of the National Economic Forum. The £30 million announcement by the First Minister is in addition to a range of budgets applied to the issue.

It is for employers, not government, to create permanent jobs. This government will continue to work with employers from businesses of all sizes and across all sectors to encourage them to employ more young people, including young graduates.

I presume this question refers to my announcement on 22 December of £1.5 million to support young people, including care leavers and young carers, access employment. Skills Development Scotland (SDS) will work between now and the end of this financial year to determine the fine details of how this funding will be used. SDS will publish eligibility criteria in due course and I will ensure you are sent a link to this when it is published.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-04751 on 18 January 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

Based on the latest available Labour Force Survey (LFS) quarterly data (July to September 2011), it is estimated that 82,000 people aged 16 to 24 in Scotland were underemployed. This was comprised of:

58,000 people who were looking for additional hours within their existing job at the same rate of pay.

24,000³ people who were looking for either an additional or new job with longer hours than their current job.

Source: Office for National Statistics

Notes

1 - Data is rounded to the nearest thousand.

2 - Data is not seasonally adjusted.

3 - A proportion of the people looking for new job with longer hours will not have cited longer hours as being the reason for looking for a new job, but will have stated that they would prefer to find a job with longer hours.

It is for employers, not Government, to create permanent job opportunities. This Government will continue to work with employers from businesses of all sizes and across all sectors to encourage them to employ young people across all sections of our communities in line with current equal opportunities legislation.

To support young women entering the labour market, career information advice and guidance, provided by Skills Development Scotland, encourages them to challenge stereotypes and pre-conceived ideas about their career choice and to overcome barriers to progression in an appropriate and supportive fashion.

I presume this question refers to my announcement on 22 December of £1.5 million to support young people, including care leavers and young carers, access employment. Skills Development Scotland (SDS) will establish appropriate measures and safeguards to ensure that this funding achieves its intended goal between now and the end of this financial year.

We will work with key partners to deliver Opportunities for All from next financial year to ensure an offer of a place in learning or training for every 16 to 19 year old who is not already in work, education or training. We will continue to target those who achieve few or no qualifications as we have been through 16+ Learning Choices.

The Scottish Government recognises that in the short term underemployment may inhibit opportunities for young people to gain employment where employers offer existing staff full employment rather than recruiting new employees. That is why we are focussed on increasing sustainable economic growth to ensure that unemployment and underemployment are reduced.