COMMITTEE FOR EMPLOYMENT AND LEARNING
MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS: THURSDAY, 28 FEBRUARY 2002
THE INTERPOINT CENTRE, BELFAST

Present: Dr Esmond Birnie (Chairman)
Mr Mervyn Carrick (Deputy Chairman)
Mr Joe Byrne
Mr John Dallat
Professor Monica McWilliams

In Attendance: Dr Andrew C Peoples
Mr Colin Jones
Mr Michael Meehan

Apologies: Mr Roy Beggs
Mrs Joan Carson
Mr Roger Hutchinson
Mrs Mary Nelis

Meeting opened at 2.05pm in closed session.

1. Presentations from senior representatives from Bombardier Aerospace, Shorts Plc

Members were welcomed to the Interpoint Centre by the following representatives from Bombardier Aerospace, Shorts: Mr A McRitchie, Director of Public Relations; Ms C Phillips, Director of Organisational Development, Technical Training and Staffing and Mr H McGonigle, Technical Training Manager.

Following presentations giving a company overview, background information on the facilities at the Interpoint Centre and the various training programmes run by the company, members toured the facilities at the Interpoint Centre. Members debated the following issues with senior representatives:

• the recruitment problems experienced by the company as the available skills base in Northern Ireland did not provide a sufficient number of adequately trained potential recruits;

• the cost to the company of providing additional training to staff needing help with the interpretation of instructions or with written communication skills;

• the increased cost to the company of providing short-term training brought about by the integration of Government Training Centres with Further Education Colleges;

• the lack of government funding to prepare people for employment in the aeronautical sector;

• development of the company's links with the Belfast Institute of Further and Higher Education;

• the poor success rates in the Modern Engineering Apprenticeship in general (in particular the jump from NVQ 2 to NVQ 3 stage) when compared to the company's own Modern Apprenticeship scheme; and

• details of the company's graduate recruitment programme and their links with schools.

2. Apologies

Apologies are detailed above.

3. Draft Minutes of 21 February 2002

Agreed. Proposed: Mr Carrick. Seconded: Mr Dallat.

4. Matters Arising

Members noted the report from the Northern Ireland Audit Office on 'Indicators of Educational Performance and Provision and agreed that Assembly Research should be asked to include an evaluation of this report in their forthcoming briefing on Adult Literacy, together with answers to the questions arising from their earlier paper on the International Adult Literacy Survey and the Programme for International Student Assessment.

Action: Clerk

The Chairman informed members that both he and the Deputy Chairman were to meet with the Review Team on Wednesday 6 March 2002, to discuss the Northern Ireland Civil Service response to devolution. Members agreed to submit their views to the Chairman or to the Committee Office in advance of this meeting.

5. Committee Responses

Members considered a draft response on the proposed Terms of Reference for the Review of Public Administration, based on the debate at last week's meeting. This was agreed for issue to the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister. (Annex 1).

Action: Clerk

Members noted that the deadline for receipt of the Committee's response on the Department for Employment and Learning's (DEL) draft Annual Business Plan 2002/03 had been extended to Friday 8 March 2002. Members considered the Plan, together with a paper from the Committee Office highlighting areas for consideration. The Committee debated the following issues:

• clarification of DEL's action to reduce both staff shortages and absenteeism within the Department;

• the need to further tailor the New Deal programme to suit Northern Ireland's needs and make it more effective for the long-term unemployed;

• the need for a strategic view to facilitate a seamless progression from education and training to employment;

• the absence of targets in the draft plan for the implementation of the work of the Taskforce on Employability and Long Term Unemployment; and

• the potential composition of the proposed Adult Literacy Committee.

The Clerk was directed to draft a response for consideration at next week's meeting.

Action: Clerk

Members directed the Clerk to obtain copies of the recent report on New Deal from the National Audit Office.

Action: Clerk

6. Correspondence

Members considered a response from the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ulster on its use of fixed-term contracts. It was agreed to request a briefing from Assembly Research at the meeting on 21 March 2002. The Clerk was also asked to invite the Association of University Teachers to brief the Committee on that date.

Action: Clerk

7 Any Other Business

Members considered correspondence from DEL on their bids and easements in the February 2002 Monitoring Round and directed the Clerk to seek clarification on the following issues:

• why an easement of £1m from New Deal 50+ was deemed to be outside the Departmental Expenditure Limit, when an easement of £1.3m from the New Deal Programme was within the limit;

• why the SSA system had not been adjusted to identify all claimants eligible for New Deal, leading to a backlog of approximately 7,000;

• why a bid was necessary to meet the costs of some economic appraisals for larger projects seeking funding under the new European Union Programmes; and

• the Department's options for end-year flexibility.

Members noted that the Minister for Finance and Personnel was provisionally due to make a statement in the Assembly on Tuesday 19 March 2002 regarding the outcome of bids in the February 2002 Monitoring Round. Members requested a summary of DEL's bids and easements in 2001/02 to be made available at a future meeting.

Action: Clerk

Members agreed that the Chairman should write to the Chairman of the Social Development Committee to seek further information on the failure of the Social Security Agency system to identify claimants eligible for New Deal and to clarify responsibilities for the New Deal for Lone Parents scheme.

Action: Clerk

The Chairman updated members on the main issues discussed at the recent meeting of the Chairpersons' Liaison Group.

Members agreed to issue a press release after today's Committee meeting.

Action: Clerk

8. Date, Time and Place of Next Meeting

The next meeting will take place at 2.00pm on Thursday 7 March 2002 in Room 152, Parliament Buildings.

The Chairman adjourned the meeting at 4.55pm.

Dr Esmond Birnie,
Chairman, Committee for Employment and Learning
7 March 2002

21 February 2002 / Menu / 7 March 2002