Vol. 484 No. 3
63 Mr. Bell asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment her views on the development of the local employment service and local partnership boards following the end of the current round of EU structural funding; and the plans, if any, she is putting in place to develop social partnership at local level from the year 2000. [22042/97]
The Deputy will appreciate that my colleague the Minister for Tourism, Sport and Recreation has responsibility for policy in relation to the development of the designated partnership areas. Notwithstanding that, it is true that 16 out of the 18 current local employment service areas are situated in partnership areas and, in terms of management structure, operate as sub-committees of the main partnership boards. My Department has been overseeing the development of the local employment service networks. The bulk of funding for the LES networks does not come from EU sources.
In general, the LES network is growing and developing in terms of client case-load and the range and quality of work being done. To date contact has been made with 14,200 people. A total of 4,822 have been placed in jobs and a further 4,277 are currently active on the general LES case-load system. I believe this represents a satisfactory rate of placement for a service dealing with the most disadvantaged people, often in unemployment blackspots.
As the Deputy is no doubt aware, there is a commitment in Partnership 2000 to expand the LES Service to all partnership areas during the lifetime of the agreement. In this connection, my officials recently met a delegation from PLANET, the umbrella organisation which represents all the partnership areas, to discuss the further expansion of the LES network during 1998.
