Value for Taxpayers' Money

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 12:32 pm on 19 January 2005.

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Photo of George Osborne George Osborne Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury 12:32, 19 January 2005

I have given way twice to the hon. Gentleman, and I do not think that I shall do so a third time.

Only a third of people who go through the new deal find sustained employment, and the figure is even lower for those in long-term unemployment. We propose an alternative called "Work First", which is partly based on the Australian model, although we have also looked at what happens in Wisconsin. Above all, however, we have examined what happens in the 13 employment zones that already exist in this country. We are modelling our proposals on the existing zones because they are considerably more effective at getting people into work than the new deal. We would thus save a substantial amount on the new deal and we argue—indeed, we will prove—that our plan will help people who are unemployed to find work.

The Small Business Service will go. The Prime Minister suddenly became a champion of it half an hour ago, but less than a fifth of small businesses know that the Department of Trade and Industry offers such a service, and fewer than one in 20 uses it. At a cost of £500,000, we do not think that it is giving especially good value for taxpayers' money. Some 168 quangos and public bodies will go.