BANBURY MP Tony Baldry has invited Iain Duncan Smith, the new Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, to visit the Banbury and Bicester job clubs and see them in action.

Mr Baldry believes the clubs, which he helped to launch in conjunction with Cherwell District Council and other agencies could form a model for similar initiatives in the rest of the country.

He said: “Home Secretary Theresa May, when she was shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, came and visited the Banbury Job Club.

“She was genuinely impressed by what she saw and largely as a consequence the Conservative election manifesto had a commitment that an incoming Conservative Government would introduce work clubs which, as I understand it, to all intents and purposes, would be identical to the concept and reality of the Banbury Job Club — seeking to support those who are out of work, and seeking to help get people back into the world of work as speedily as possible.”