Stephen Flynn
Main Page: Stephen Flynn (Scottish National Party - Aberdeen South)Department Debates - View all Stephen Flynn's debates with the Department for Work and Pensions
(4 years, 2 months ago)
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Dr Coffey
The Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, my hon. Friend the Member for Mid Sussex, has held a roundtable meeting in Derbyshire. That has been part of the engagement. My hon. Friend the Member for Derbyshire Dales (Miss Dines) is right to suggest that there are other alternatives. Of course apprenticeships are available, which was further confirmed yesterday with the announcement of additional support, providing a longer-term relationship between young people and an employer. There are traineeships as well. So there are many opportunities available to try to help our young people get into the world of work.
Stephen Flynn (Aberdeen South) (SNP)
Paying some 17-year-olds £4.55 an hour for a three-day week for six months is welcome as far as it goes, but it is not going to avert the looming jobs crisis. The best way to avert that crisis is to extend the job retention scheme. Does the Secretary of State agree that that scheme should be extended, and if not, is this not less kickstart and more a kick in the teeth for millions of other workers living in the UK?
Dr Coffey
I do not know the hon. Member very well, but I am disappointed by his attitude. Candidly, millions of jobs have been protected by the furlough scheme, and we have extended that once already. He will be aware that Scotland has the highest unemployment rate in the UK. That is not a record for the SNP Government to be proud of, which is why we are ensuring that the kickstart scheme reaches all parts of Scotland. I hope that he will join in and try to make this a success in his great city of Aberdeen.