Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what his policy is on requiring jobseeker's allowance claimants to conduct job searches when they have been offered work and are waiting for a start date.

Claimants with a job to start are still required to be available for and actively seeking work as there may be instances where the job start is delayed, or even falls through completely, and it is important to ensure claimants do not miss out on the opportunity to find alternative work. They would need to look for jobs which are appropriate to their situation - so in cases where they have a job start date in the future it may be appropriate for them to look for temporary work. It may also be appropriate for the individual to continue to seek work before a start date if the job they have been offered is part-time when they are able to work full time.

This is common and Work Coaches are familiar with and responsive to this type of scenario.