Interview with Employment Minister Jim Knight MP

Yesterday I met with Jim Knight MP in Parliament to talk about a number of topics surrounding the welfare to work industry. A very pleasant, well-informed and open interviewee, the Employment Minister found time to answer a number of questions put to him by readers of Indus Delta. The following is not in direct quote form, but a summary of what the Minister had to say on each topic.

The Interview

The transition from unemployment to work can often be hard for individuals who have been out of employment for a while, is there any movement within DWP to make this process easier by, for example, working with employers to encourage them to perhaps pay initial salaries fortnightly in the same time frame that JSA is paid in, to make the change less dramatic?

Jim felt that although perhaps something could be worked out between the specific employer and individual, this was unlikely on a national scale, and is not being pursued currently as having to have separate payment systems for former jobseekers may disincentivise employers from taking on those who were recently unemployed, and this should be avoided.

The 'better off in work' credit seems to have gone down well, but there wasn't much more specifically outlined in the recent DWP White Paper - could you give us a bit more information?

The 'better off in work' credit will ensure that all people who were receiving benefits will be at least £40 better off a week. Jim pointed out that this scheme has been trialled, and what was interesting was that, actually, not that many individuals took it up. He said that the guiding aim here is to help make the transition from unemployment into work as easy as possible, and to ensure that no one loses out from taking up a job.

If the star rating is used to assess FND providers, how will Jobcentre Plus be able to convince people to choose the provider with the poorer rating in a choice district?

Jim noted that nothing was entirely decided yet, but in his experience as a Schools Minister, there is no better incentive than the equivalent of an Ofsted rating, and whilst it may not be popular, there is no better way to keep providers striving to deliver the best possible results.

The employment rate for individuals with mental health issues is still very low at 3.4%. Work Choice is coming in, and bringing together a number of programmes designed to help those with disabilities, will there be much more support in there for people with mental health issues?

Mental health workers will be placed in jobcentres throughout the country to provide any help and support necessary to help people with such challenges find work. (NB. this is largely Jonathan Shaw's brief)

A review of Pathways was announced in the recent DWP White Paper. Providers have noticed a number of issues with the programme, including inappropriate referrals, and with the introduction of the Work Capability Assessment, less of a right to send customers back if on, what they consider to be, the wrong programme. Are there lessons that can be learned from Pathways?

Jim was very interested and keen to hear the feedback from providers about Pathways, and said that one of the key points of consideration with Pathways is that customers do seem to like it, although it has (surprisingly) been less effective that the trial had suggested it would be. Sure there are lessons to be learned, and this is what the review will look at in closer detail.

Despite the number of unemployed people, there are still around 270,000 vacancies currently advertised with Jobcentre Plus nationally. Are there any plans to help better match those looking for work with the positions available?

Jim commented on his recent announcement of Jobcentre Plus reforms, and pointed out that some of them should definitely help people find the right jobs, such as named personal advisers for young people involved with FJF. In fact, from January 25th, named advisers will be available for all young people who have been unemployed for 6 months. Nonetheless, he noted that over half of individuals are still coming off JSA after 3 months unemployment, and 70% after 6 months, so the system is most definitely still very active.

As the Employment Minister, how do you feel about the political uncertainity that faces the industry with the Conservatives saying they wouldn't sign off on FND Phase 2?

Jim said he understood the frustrations that providers face as a result of the non-committal so far from the Conservatives, and thinks that if they were to win and not sign off on it then it would cause a massive financial problem, and that the process is so far along now that they are being unrealistic. He hopes that some reassurance can be found in the fact that a number of the current policies would be adopted by the Conservatives and they have one of Labour's former key advisers in Freud, so hopefully in practical terms the industry wouldn't be destabilised too much by, what he sees as, their largely unrealistic idea to scrap phase 2.

We briefly touched on Jobcentre Plus reforms earlier - when will these start taking place?

The reforms are starting now, for example with the introduction of named advisers this month. Jim aims to have the first steps towards all jobseekers having a registered email address firmly in place before the election. He comments that the technology is all there, and moving quickly, and so this presents an opportunity to take advantage of it, making sure that the most disadvantaged are not deprived of its uses. The UK is already a world leader in using technology in education, so the same high standards should also be available for jobseekers. All those looking for work will be able to go to their nearest UK Online centre to log on, and this will be promoted by advisers.

Lone parents are to be expected to return to work earlier now, and Yvette Cooper (Secretary of State for DWP) has been speaking recently about the introduction of more flexible working hours to enable this. How will you convince employers to do this?

During the recession, employers have seen redundancy much more as a last resort than an initial option, and have already been introducing shorter working hours for employees in order to keep them on. As the usefulness of this is being seen, Jim hopes that employers will be much more willing to embrace this work pattern for those entering the labour market.

With an election only months away, how much of the recent 'Building Britain's Recovery' White Paper will be able to be actioned beforehand?

Jim feels that one of the key strengths of the White Paper is that, actually, much of it doesn't need legislating for, which makes the process much easier and quicker. An aim of the paper was to harness and build upon existing systems, as opposed to rewriting the rule book, so much of it should be in place before the election.

Lord Mandelson recently announced the National Skills Strategy, certain elements, for example the Skills Accounts, seem to have been built on ideas from Leitch's 2006 Skills Report, is this the case, and if so why more than 3 years after the report?

Jim noted that you have to find the right time to bring in certain reforms/ideas, and the recession has certainly helped to focus the mind. Coming over to DWP from working in education and skills, Jim feels that linking up with BIS when it comes to skills is absolutely the right move.

A review is also to be carried out on the Work Capability Assessment, do you feel it has been too tough?

Although, as he points out, the review will be able to look at this in more detail, Jim is broadly happy with how it has been working so far.

There have been some comments that perhaps there has been a slower uptake of FJF than expected, with only 31,000 of the initial 75,000 places being taken up so far?

Jim commented that the process for FJF places happens in different stages, and there are actually a lot of applicants, but sometimes offers take a bit longer than others as, for example, some need CRB checks which can take a while. All in all, he's pleased with the scheme, as the idea was only mooted at the Jobs Summit last year, so to go from the initial idea, to putting the scheme together and to have 31,000 young people already in work is quite an achievement.