asked the Minister for Labour whether he has received a communication from the office of the Ombudsman arising from the sense of grievance of a number of trainees and sponsors at the reduction last year of the Teamwork wages grant; the date of that communication; and whether any request contained therein has been complied with in full.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Teamwork Wages Grant.
7.
My Department received a communication from the office of the Ombudsman on 4 November 1987 about the implementation of the decision concerning reduction of the Teamwork grant to sponsors from £70 a week to £60 a week.
My Department's final reply of 25 February 1988 to the Ombudsman stated that prior to 1 April 1987 a grant of £70 per week was available towards the employment costs of young workers employed on Teamwork schemes. As part of the provisions of the 1987 budget, the grant was reduced to £60 per week with effect from 1 April 1987. The new rate was applicable to new participants recruited on or after 1 April 1987 on both new and current projects. However, where a written or definite oral commitment was given to a sponsor prior to 1 April that the sponsor would qualify for a £70 per week wage grant in respect of a particular employee this commitment was honoured.
I want to complain that my concern in this question is not so much with the substance of the complaint — we debated that the last day — but the way in which the complaint was handled. In that context, may I ask the Minister if he is aware of the fact that when the aggrieved parties contacted the Ombudsman's office to find out what was happening to the investigations they had sought, they were told that there had not been a response forthcoming from the Department of Labour, that when the aggrieved parties then contacted the senior officials in the Department of Labour that fact was confirmed to them and that the senior officials indicated to the aggrieved young people that replying to the Ombudsman was not regarded as a priority.
I understand that there was some delay in the correspondence on this matter and I apologise for that.
Can I ask the Minister if he will undertake to inform all his officials that dealing in a satisfactory manner with the Ombudsman's office is an important part of their duties?
It was not a case of any discourtesy to the Ombudsman's office. There were some clerical difficulties which I apologise for.
All of this may be academic given the fact that the Ombudsman's office has all but closed down, but in so far as we still have an Ombudsman's office it should be clearly made the duty of every official to co-operate with his office.
The Deputy has made his point. There is no need for repetition. Question No. 8.
It is interesting to note that even though the Department have not lost any staff and the Ombudsman's office have lost a lot of their staff the Department cannot keep up with it.
Order. I have called Question No. 8.