Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much funding from the European Social Fund was committed to employment support projects in the last financial year.

Approximately £403 million from the European Social Fund (ESF), including the Youth Employment Initiative, was committed in the tax year 2015/2016 for funding employment support projects.

This figure represents the value of Funding Agreements signed in respect of activity under Priority Axis (PA) 1 of the published Operational Programme for the European Social Fund for England 2014-20.

PA 1 aims to increase participation in the labour market and thereby improve social inclusion and mobility. It supports:

- Access to employment for jobseekers and inactive people;

- Sustainable integration of young people;

- Youth Employment Initiative (YEI);

- Active inclusion and

- Community Led Local Development.

Please note the figure quoted is for the England ESF programme only. ESF is a devolved matter and is handled by the Managing Authorities in the Devolved Administrations for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.