Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the timetable is for the publication of its final report on the effectiveness of programmes to protect former SSI steelworkers from long-term unemployment.

The Sahaviriya Steel Industries (SSI) Task Force, funded by the Government to support individuals and businesses directly affected by the closure of SSI in Redcar, has published 3 annual reports (the most recent in 2018) setting out progress with helping the people affected by the liquidation of SSI. Further details are at: https://www.redcar-cleveland.gov.uk/SSITaskForce

The Task Force has commissioned the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to analyse the outcomes of workers affected by the closure.

The DWP has been working to identify; quality assure; integrate and securely store and handle data on former SSI UK employees and workers in its supply chain to fulfil the commission of the Task Force. The department’s analysis will innovatively combine data from the official receiver; local tracking data from collected by Job Centre Plus; DWP/HMRC administrative data; and published ONS data.

The analysis is currently being finalised and will be published in due course by the Department for Work and Pensions.