AQW 23540/17-22


Ms Claire Sugden
Independent
East Londonderry


Tabled Date: 01/10/2021
Answered On Date: 21/10/2021
Priority Written: No


Question:
To ask the Minister for the Economy (i) for his assessment of whether those over 50 were disproportionately enetered into furlough arrangements; and (ii) what steps he is taking to ensuring this age group is supported back into work.


Answer:
(i) The latest available provisional figures show that some 29,700 jobs remained on the UK Government’s furlough scheme at 31 August 2021, which is approximately 4% of eligible employments in Northern Ireland.
The latest available provisional figures for Northern Ireland as at 31 August broken down by age are provided in the table below.
NI Employments on Furlough
31 August 2021
Under 25
3,120
25 to 29
2,680
30 to 34
3,110
35 to 39
3,490
40 to 44
3,440
45 to 49
3,390
50 to 54
3,440
55 to 59
2,940
60 to 64
2,220
65 and over
1,910
Total
29,700
The table below shows the percentage of eligible UK employees that were on furlough by age over the lifetime of the scheme. This data is not available at a Northern Ireland level.
Under 18
18 to 24
25 to 34
35 to 44
45 to 54
55 to 64
65 & over
31 July 2020
34%
24%
17%
15%
14%
16%
22%
31 Aug 2020
21%
16%
12%
11%
11%
12%
16%
30 Sept 2020
14%
11%
9%
9%
8%
9%
13%
31 Oct 2020
11%
9%
8%
7%
7%
8%
11%
30 Nov 2020
32%
19%
13%
11%
11%
11%
15%
31 Dec 2020
31%
20%
13%
12%
11%
11%
15%
31 Jan 2021
37%
23%
15%
14%
14%
14%
18%
28 Feb 2021
36%
22%
15%
14%
13%
14%
18%
31 Mar 2021
34%
21%
14%
13%
12%
13%
17%
30 April 2021
26%
16%
11%
11%
10%
11%
14%
31 May 2021
13%
10%
8%
8%
8%
8%
12%
30 June 2021
7%
6%
6%
6%
6%
7%
10%
31 July 2021
5%
5%
5%
6%
5%
6%
8%
31 Aug 2021
4%
4%
4%
5%
5%
5%
7%
The above table indicates that the UK furlough scheme has been important in sustaining employment across the age spectrum both in Northern Ireland and across the UK as a whole.
(ii) My Department remains focused on ensuring that our people can achieve their full potential and benefit from strong labour market engagement. In 2020/21 The Skills Intervention Programme was introduced to support those individuals whose employment was most impacted by Covid-19. Free courses were provided covering a number of priority sectors.
Local Further and Higher Education providers delivered courses online ranging from level 2 to level 6. Through the Skills Intervention Programme, it was envisaged that participants on completion of a course and with the lifting of Government Covid-19 restrictions, would be prepared for a return to paid employment.
Skill Up – The Flexible Skills Fund is a new initiative, following on from the success of The Skills Intervention Programme, delivering free training places in an investment of up to £23million over three years. Skill Up will fully fund the local further education colleges and universities delivering qualifications accessible by all NI citizens aged 18 and over.
Skills for a 10X Economy, includes all age ranges in Northern Ireland, and part of the strategy includes creating a culture of lifelong learning for all. To summarise, the overarching proposal is to create a new Lifelong Learning Action Plan, which will consider a range of issues such as increasing adults’ motivation to learn, the role of business in promoting a culture of lifelong learning and assessing the constraints to participation. While a review, in the context of consultation responses is ongoing, these proposals have been broadly endorsed through the consultation process.