Business of the House

Andrew Jones Excerpts

Thursday 20th December 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lansley]

I must confess that I was not aware of the street light situation in Corby—[Hon. Members: “Why not?”] Street lights are a matter for individual local authorities. As I am sure the hon. Gentleman is discovering, if a Member wishes to raise that sort of constituency matter, applying for an Adjournment debate is a good tactic.

[Andrew Jones (Harrogate and Knaresborough) (Con)]

Youth unemployment in Harrogate and Knaresborough currently stands at 2.6%, having halved in the past year, and we have obviously seen some good progress nationally. Please may we have a debate on the growth of apprenticeships and the role they are playing in cutting youth unemployment?

[Mr Lansley]

I very much agree with my hon. Friend. Since the general election more than 1 million people have started an apprenticeship and the budget has been increased to £1.5 billion. In addition, I know that he will share my optimism about the development of the Youth Contract, especially the 250,000 extra work experience places or sector-based work academy places, the wage incentive to support 18 to 24-year-olds getting into work and the extra incentives for young apprentices in particular. That is all contributing, I hope. For example, the most recent data show that the unemployment rate for 16 to 24-year-olds is down 1.3 points this quarter.