:00:09. > :00:14.If hello and welcome to BBC Parliament's live coverage. The
:00:14. > :00:21.main business in the Commons today is the rare Welfare Reform Bill.
:00:21. > :00:27.The legislation will inform from new welfare credit. It also creates
:00:27. > :00:31.an annual cap on benefits set at the level of average earnings,
:00:31. > :00:38.currently �26,000 per year. There where report on a U-turn on the
:00:38. > :00:43.benefits cap. Remember to join me for a rental of the day of both
:00:43. > :00:53.Houses of Parliament at the record this evening. First, we have
:00:53. > :01:20.
:01:20. > :01:26.questions to Iain Duncan Smith and Mr Speaker, a message from Her
:01:26. > :01:34.Majesty the Queen. I have received your address concerning the 90th
:01:34. > :01:40.birthday of his Royal Highness, the Duke of Edinburgh. It gives me
:01:40. > :01:48.great pleasure to hear of the loyal affection and regard of the House,
:01:48. > :01:58.the nation and the Commonwealth in this special occasion, and I
:01:58. > :02:26.
:02:26. > :02:33.welcome your intention to send the Order! Questions to the Secretary
:02:33. > :02:38.of State for Work and Pensions. Speaker, with your permission I
:02:38. > :02:41.will answer this and question 14 together. Work experience and
:02:41. > :02:44.apprenticeships are central to improving prospects of young,
:02:44. > :02:51.unemployed people. This year's budget, the Chancellor announced
:02:51. > :02:56.funding for an additional 80,000 work experience placements. In
:02:56. > :03:00.addition to that, we have announced a tens of thousands of new
:03:00. > :03:06.apprenticeships. We will also be providing early access for young
:03:06. > :03:11.people from the most challenged background to the Work Programme.
:03:11. > :03:16.am grateful for that. Apart from the record deficit the previous
:03:16. > :03:20.government also let an extra 270,000 young people unemployed
:03:20. > :03:25.when the left office. How is the Government working with business to
:03:25. > :03:32.ensure that new apprenticeships are what hour economy need to tackle
:03:32. > :03:38.youth an employer -- unemployment. The Government has a very proactive
:03:39. > :03:41.campaign to engage employers, both working with employees to a
:03:41. > :03:49.identify it workings Behan's play met -- placements were unemployed
:03:49. > :03:55.people. My colleagues at the Department for business are working
:03:55. > :04:00.hard to engage employers with apprenticeships. They are being
:04:00. > :04:04.successful in doing so and have met their targets for apprenticeships.
:04:05. > :04:09.I welcome what my right honourable friend has just said about the
:04:09. > :04:13.importance of apprenticeships. There are 615 unemployed people in
:04:13. > :04:16.my constituency. What other measures will be put in place to
:04:16. > :04:21.insure the some people have the skills they need to compete in the
:04:21. > :04:27.workplace? The other policy we will introduce later in the summer his
:04:27. > :04:30.work Academies which will provide a mix of short-term training and a
:04:30. > :04:33.period of work experience but, again designed to provide young
:04:33. > :04:42.people were the first foothold in the workplace. To give those
:04:42. > :04:47.without previous qualifications to get a view into employment. May I
:04:47. > :04:52.congratulate the Minister for his statement and also for his
:04:52. > :04:58.announcement of the Work Programme comes into force around now. Does
:04:58. > :05:02.he however except that at this time where there is a shortage of jobs
:05:02. > :05:10.that they knew providers might well be placing jobs that it is easiest
:05:10. > :05:14.to get jobs anyway. To insure that those who find it most difficult to
:05:14. > :05:20.get jobs or do not want to work, that we need a backup stage? Will
:05:20. > :05:27.the keepers might open about the future jobs fund? -- will he keep
:05:27. > :05:31.his mind Open? I am very grateful for those comments. I do except
:05:31. > :05:37.there is a challenge pleasing some people into work. That is why we
:05:37. > :05:40.have created a different structure to reflect this challenge. I hear
:05:40. > :05:48.what he says. I think the problem with the future jobs fund was the
:05:48. > :05:54.cost. In this financial time, we need to see what not only works but
:05:55. > :05:58.what is affordable. Will the Government reinstate Labour's jobs
:05:58. > :06:03.guarantee, ensuring that young people are offered a job or
:06:04. > :06:10.training scheme after a six-month out of work? What she does not
:06:10. > :06:13.understand is that governments do not create jobs. Governments have
:06:13. > :06:18.to create an environment where jobs are created by the private sector.
:06:18. > :06:22.Our job is to ensure that unemployed people are in the best
:06:22. > :06:26.position to take advantage of jobs when they are created. One of their
:06:26. > :06:35.encouraging things is the private sector is creating more full-time
:06:35. > :06:42.jobs. Question number two. We recognise the vitally important
:06:42. > :06:46.role that child care place in supporting parents. We set out a
:06:46. > :06:51.process with options for childcare within universal credit. We have
:06:51. > :06:55.also committed to spend all the money at present available for
:06:55. > :07:02.childcare. It remains our attention that everybody moving into work
:07:02. > :07:07.will be better off when the child care his imprint -- included.
:07:07. > :07:14.the Minister ensure that parents are working within 16 hours a week
:07:14. > :07:20.will continue to get childcare support? The plan the we have got
:07:20. > :07:23.to, the purpose is to make sure that the money we have is spread so
:07:23. > :07:28.that parents taking those choices of a differential I was would find
:07:28. > :07:35.themselves not just 16 hours, but across the board able to going to
:07:35. > :07:39.work and get support necessary. The answer to that question is yes.
:07:39. > :07:46.the Minister tell the House the effect that universal credit will
:07:46. > :07:51.have one child poverty? The wider poverty is that they universal
:07:51. > :07:57.credit is a static system. We estimate we will have the effect of
:07:57. > :08:02.list -- lifting 900,000 people out of poverty. Many of those will be
:08:02. > :08:07.children. It is worth remembering that under the present childcare
:08:07. > :08:11.systems, are they are at least 100,000 out there who do not get
:08:11. > :08:15.the child care that they are eligible for. Under universal
:08:15. > :08:22.credit, the take-up will be much better and much higher. Universal
:08:22. > :08:25.credit will have a better effect. The Secretary of State has been
:08:25. > :08:31.right to recognise the support for him childcare is key to whether
:08:31. > :08:34.parents are better off in or out of work. He promised the Welfare
:08:34. > :08:38.Reform Bill committee that the Government's proposals on child
:08:38. > :08:44.care support would be available before the bill left the committee.
:08:44. > :08:51.That promise has been broken. He has only been able to provide at
:08:51. > :08:56.discussion of the options. When will he come up with the policy?
:08:56. > :09:01.will get a grip the moment his team decide whether they decide if they
:09:01. > :09:06.are or in favour or against the bill. The Leader of the Opposition
:09:06. > :09:11.has today moved like a worm and has decided he is both for and against
:09:11. > :09:15.it. The whole point about bringing forward other proposals is that he
:09:15. > :09:20.and others have a chance to look at them and decide whether they agree
:09:20. > :09:24.with some of them or do not. We will come forehead after that
:09:24. > :09:34.consultation and make clear what our final proposals are. I think
:09:34. > :09:37.
:09:37. > :09:41.that is rather fear. -- fear. Question number four. Mr Speaker,
:09:42. > :09:49.we estimate that the total annual cost it two Great Britain of
:09:49. > :09:55.workplace injuries is currently in order of �20 billion. In the
:09:55. > :10:00.workplace last year there was 152 fatalities, 26,000 major injuries
:10:00. > :10:06.and over 800,000 people suffer as a consequence of work-related illness.
:10:06. > :10:10.As a consequence of the Cup's, a large number of inspections have
:10:10. > :10:16.been withdrawn. How will the Government is sure these figures
:10:16. > :10:22.are increased year on.? As a former union official, he will know that
:10:22. > :10:30.the biggest challenge we face is of those employers who do cut corners
:10:30. > :10:34.and breaks rules. We will have a health inspections on at those
:10:34. > :10:42.employers who are not playing by the book and endangering their
:10:42. > :10:46.employees. That is where I want our regulatory effort to be focused.
:10:46. > :10:49.my honourable friend has just said, you will agree that health and
:10:49. > :10:55.safety rep -- regulation applied correctly is important. Does he
:10:55. > :11:01.also agree that applied inappropriately it can cost jobs
:11:01. > :11:05.and damage our economy? absolutely agree. I believe health
:11:05. > :11:09.and safety is extremely important to get right, as the honourable
:11:09. > :11:12.member suggest we need to protect people against real dangers in the
:11:12. > :11:17.workplace. If we have a system which has over-bureaucratic it
:11:17. > :11:27.would lead to the closure of businesses and will cost jobs. We
:11:27. > :11:30.
:11:30. > :11:34.need to get the right balance. Number five. Transitional placement
:11:34. > :11:41.is being in assured to make sure they will be no loss borne to
:11:41. > :11:45.Universal Credit per circumstances remain the same. Thank you. I not
:11:45. > :11:49.the Secretary of State's reply, has the not taking into account the
:11:49. > :11:54.criticisms made of this policy by family action? It will not apply to
:11:54. > :12:01.new recipients. Changes in circumstances leading to loss of
:12:01. > :12:06.cash protection are not being sufficiently did find. By failing
:12:06. > :12:14.to operate cash protection in line with inflation, many people could
:12:14. > :12:18.I hear what the Honourable Gentleman says. I would have
:12:18. > :12:23.thought he would have welcomed the idea that we are planning to cash
:12:23. > :12:27.protect those already in receipt of other benefits. I don't think I
:12:27. > :12:35.really need to take too many lessons from his party. When they
:12:35. > :12:43.scrapped the 10 p tax band, they did not cash protect anybody.
:12:43. > :12:46.the Secretary of State accept that in insuring people are cash
:12:46. > :12:51.protected he is managing to bring in the universal benefit which
:12:51. > :12:59.would be almost impossible to do, and that benefit will be of benefit
:12:59. > :13:02.to the work incentive people up and I am glad my Honourable Friend is
:13:02. > :13:06.more welcoming than the Honourable Gentleman. The truth is that cash
:13:06. > :13:09.protection is there to protect people who win the circumstances
:13:09. > :13:13.have changed Universal Credit they would have lost out slightly, but
:13:13. > :13:16.they won't, because we will make sure they are smoothed into
:13:16. > :13:21.Universal Credit unless there is a significant change. That is a
:13:21. > :13:26.positive gesture from the government. If the other government
:13:26. > :13:34.did not cash protect people when they scrapped the 10 p starting
:13:34. > :13:37.rate. Not withstanding that the government is going to provide a
:13:37. > :13:41.provisional protection, can the Secretary of State explain why in
:13:41. > :13:45.the context of new claimants their plans to abolish the disability
:13:45. > :13:51.element of child credit and replace it with a disability edition will
:13:51. > :13:55.mean a cut of 50 % to families with disabled children. According to
:13:55. > :14:00.family action, and that is not this side of the house, this will mean
:14:00. > :14:06.that families with one disabled child are in line to lose �1,400
:14:06. > :14:08.per annum, people in great need. Why are disabled children are
:14:08. > :14:17.buried and the cost of this Government's welfare reforms?
:14:17. > :14:21.have to say that they are not. Hour adjustments to this have been
:14:21. > :14:24.meaning there are more disabled children in families benefiting
:14:24. > :14:27.from a high degree from the changes we have made and they will work
:14:27. > :14:30.well with Universal Credit. The whole idea about bringing more
:14:30. > :14:37.disabled people into the workforce has to be a good thing, unless she
:14:37. > :14:43.disagrees with that. Mr Speaker, we recognise that poverty is about
:14:43. > :14:47.more than income and more than their deprivation indicator, and
:14:47. > :14:51.this considers both financial and on financial elements such as ill
:14:51. > :14:56.health and social isolation and used alongside low-income it will
:14:56. > :15:02.give a greater understand and of pensioners experience of poverty.
:15:02. > :15:06.am proud that many people chose my constituency to retire to and am
:15:06. > :15:10.grateful for the Government's efforts to arrest the levels of
:15:10. > :15:18.pensioner poverty left by the previous government. But this
:15:18. > :15:22.threatens to be undermined by double-digit price rises by energy
:15:22. > :15:26.companies. What more can be done to address this? My Honourable Friend
:15:26. > :15:29.is right be keeping a home warm is an important part of the standard
:15:29. > :15:32.of living in pensioners and this is why it is in the broader measure we
:15:32. > :15:36.are undertaking and I would echo the words of my Right Honourable
:15:36. > :15:40.Friend the Energy Secretary is said that faced with double-digit price
:15:40. > :15:48.rises, and other people could shop around so they could use the market
:15:48. > :15:54.Pensioner poverty was tackled by the last government with great
:15:54. > :15:57.regret, but how can we be assured that in changing any measures a
:15:57. > :16:01.pensioner poverty that the government isn't simply trying to
:16:01. > :16:05.cover up a failure of its own policies into the future. What
:16:05. > :16:09.assurances can he give to the House about these changes? I am grateful
:16:09. > :16:12.for the question. The idea of measuring pensioner poverty in
:16:12. > :16:15.terms of actual deprivation is supplementary and we will continue
:16:15. > :16:18.to publish both, but I'm sure he would accept that having a penny or
:16:18. > :16:23.two above an arbitrary income line does not mean you have a good
:16:23. > :16:33.standard of living, and we aim to tackle all facets on quality of
:16:33. > :16:34.
:16:34. > :16:37.Mr Speaker, on 21st March I announced an immediate review of
:16:37. > :16:43.health and safety regulation with a view to finding ways to simplify
:16:43. > :16:46.the regulatory burden on business. That review is being chaired by the
:16:46. > :16:51.professor of risk management at King's College London. He published
:16:51. > :16:57.a call for evidence on 20th May, and the closing days 29th July and
:16:57. > :17:01.we hope to publish the findings of the review later this year. I thank
:17:01. > :17:04.my right honourable friend. Some of the most inappropriate and
:17:04. > :17:09.burdensome health and safety recommendations on business come
:17:09. > :17:12.from unqualified cowboy consultants. My Right Honourable Friend the Home
:17:13. > :17:16.Secretary is getting rid of cowboy wheel clampers, what is the
:17:16. > :17:20.government doing to tackle cowboy Health and Safety Consultants?
:17:20. > :17:26.Either emerge agree with my Honourable Friend. -- I very much
:17:26. > :17:29.agree. We launched an online register of qualified health and
:17:29. > :17:33.safety consultants provide -- precisely with a view of stamping
:17:33. > :17:36.out cowboys. I want other businesses to be working with
:17:36. > :17:39.qualified people capable of advising them on what the law says
:17:39. > :17:46.rather than what people who would like to argue it does something
:17:46. > :17:50.different claims it says. While the minister is considering what reform
:17:50. > :17:55.might be necessary to health and safety, I hope he will take into
:17:55. > :18:01.account the problems that the Health and Safety Executive have
:18:01. > :18:06.had. In my constituency there was a major fire incident over the last
:18:06. > :18:10.few days which has covered much of the industrial area in acrid black
:18:10. > :18:16.smoke as well as a residential areas, and I hope he can give me an
:18:16. > :18:20.assurance that the Health and Safety Executive will work together
:18:20. > :18:27.with the local authority, the council and the fire service and
:18:27. > :18:34.everybody else in the town, and we have reached the conclusion and
:18:34. > :18:37.should be closed down. I am aware of the unfortunate incidents in the
:18:37. > :18:40.constituency. I cannot comment specifically asked about the
:18:40. > :18:43.investigation they can assure him that the Health and Safety
:18:43. > :18:47.Executive is investigating carefully what is happening and
:18:47. > :18:57.lessons must be learnt that it understands the we should be
:18:57. > :18:57.
:18:57. > :19:01.concentrating resources on genuine The government is committed to
:19:01. > :19:05.reducing disincentives in the benefit system and the Universal
:19:05. > :19:09.Credit has a disregard for couples which will help them keep more of
:19:09. > :19:18.their earnings in work. It is our intention overtime to work further
:19:18. > :19:22.A widow and widower each with two children who form a new
:19:22. > :19:25.relationship could be �9,000 worse off as a result of the proposed
:19:25. > :19:29.benefits can. Given reported confusion among some ministers over
:19:29. > :19:35.the weekend about the fate of the benefits cap, can the Secretary of
:19:35. > :19:39.State assure us that such a couple would not face a penalty? Clearly,
:19:39. > :19:43.as the Honourable Lady made out, we do not want to make anyone's face
:19:43. > :19:46.further penalties and our plan is to make sure that over this period
:19:46. > :19:49.time we work to erode the couple penalty, but it's worth reminding
:19:49. > :19:53.the Honourable Lady quite specifically what happened under
:19:53. > :19:58.the last government because it is important the baseline we have
:19:58. > :20:02.accepted. It was pointed out that the couple needed about 75 % the
:20:02. > :20:05.income of two people together as singles, but under the last
:20:05. > :20:09.government they left them only 60 % of those earnings, in other words
:20:09. > :20:12.they took far more than most other countries did and that is the
:20:12. > :20:21.reason we are in difficulty and I think she should reflect on that
:20:21. > :20:25.I am pleased to tell the House that as of today all bar four of the
:20:25. > :20:28.contract package Jerez for the work programme are now fully operational
:20:28. > :20:32.and that many thousands of claimants have already been
:20:32. > :20:36.referred to the work programme and I am also pleased to say that in
:20:36. > :20:42.one area where a provider has been quick off the ground they have
:20:42. > :20:46.achieved the first to job outcomes. I thank my Right Honourable Friend
:20:46. > :20:50.for his comments there. Will he join me in congratulating the
:20:50. > :20:56.providers that are participating in the work programme and does he
:20:56. > :20:59.agree with me that by involving a diverse range of providers we can
:20:59. > :21:05.tackle welfare dependency and worthlessness that grew and the
:21:05. > :21:08.Labour so we can ensure that work does pay. I absolutely agree with
:21:08. > :21:11.my Honourable Friend. One of the things that is encouraging about
:21:11. > :21:16.the work programme is the vast diversity of organisations taking
:21:16. > :21:19.part, from big international organisations to small businesses
:21:20. > :21:23.took some prestigious charities like the Prince's Trust and
:21:23. > :21:26.individual localise charities. There is even a garden project in
:21:26. > :21:30.Yorkshire and with many of our local colleges. Together they can
:21:30. > :21:35.make a huge difference in what is a revolutionary approach to long-term
:21:35. > :21:39.unemployment in this country. minister will remember about the
:21:39. > :21:42.exchange of correspondence with the select committee about to be
:21:42. > :21:45.transferred cover. Now the work programme has happen there is
:21:45. > :21:51.confusion about which posts will enjoy the protection and that seems
:21:51. > :21:56.to have continued with contractor is in the same area, one saying it
:21:56. > :22:00.does apply, and others saying it doesn't do exactly the same workers
:22:00. > :22:08.in some of the sub-contracted companies. I would ask the Minister
:22:08. > :22:13.to clarify exactly as to what positions will have that protection
:22:13. > :22:17.and what the rules are with regard to this fund for people working in
:22:17. > :22:22.the work programme. What the Honourable Lady needs to remember
:22:22. > :22:27.is that in many cases the programmes will replace it are
:22:27. > :22:30.different programmes. There will be cases where it does not apply. We
:22:30. > :22:33.have been very clear in saying to the providers it is a matter
:22:33. > :22:38.between the providers themselves, the individuals on the former
:22:38. > :22:42.employers to resolve where it applies. It is not for the
:22:42. > :22:45.department to offer legal advice to provide us. Can I welcome the speed
:22:45. > :22:49.to which the work programme contract has been put together, but
:22:49. > :22:53.it is the case that some voluntary organisations in my constituency
:22:53. > :22:56.who took an interest in a have not been successful. Could the minister
:22:56. > :23:00.reassure them that there will continue to be opportunities for
:23:00. > :23:07.them to play a role in relation to getting people back into work in a
:23:07. > :23:10.more informal way. I can. There will be further opportunities to
:23:10. > :23:14.contract has to provide support to the Department, but we do not
:23:14. > :23:18.believe that the supply chains to the work programme providers are
:23:18. > :23:21.fixed in stone and in perpetuity. The nature of the programme makes
:23:21. > :23:27.it desirable for the contract is to look for the best in the business
:23:27. > :23:37.and getting people in the business. I am sure it will find his way back
:23:37. > :23:42.
:23:42. > :23:44.into the programme even if it is Mr Speaker. The Independent office
:23:44. > :23:49.for budget responsibility is forecasting unemployment of four
:23:49. > :23:53.from its current level of 2.5 million to around 2 million by 2015.
:23:53. > :24:01.There is no separate forecasts for youth unemployment, but over the
:24:01. > :24:05.medium term it will follow a broadly similar trend. What's less
:24:05. > :24:09.than 14 % of the population in my constituency are aged between 18
:24:09. > :24:13.and 24, this accounts for 35 % of people looking for work in the
:24:13. > :24:16.constituency. What is the Minister doing to ensure that private
:24:16. > :24:20.contractors in the new work programme went simply cherry-pick
:24:20. > :24:25.those areas of the country where it is easy to get young people into
:24:25. > :24:29.work and ignore less performing economic areas like my own
:24:29. > :24:32.constituency. I would like to reassure the Honourable Member that
:24:32. > :24:35.one of the things we looked out for was whether we would see a
:24:35. > :24:37.difference in the level of interest between different areas of the
:24:37. > :24:44.country depending on the nature of the local labour market. That was
:24:44. > :24:48.not the case. The competition was intense, and the presence of the
:24:48. > :24:50.work programme offering people support after nine months and after
:24:50. > :24:55.three months of unemployment, combined with the additional
:24:55. > :24:58.support provided through JobCentre plus and work experience
:24:58. > :25:05.opportunities will, as the months go by, make a significant
:25:05. > :25:09.difference to their prospects. my Honourable Friend agree that the
:25:09. > :25:13.best way to deal with youth unemployment is not just through
:25:13. > :25:17.the 250,000 apprenticeships, but through the roll-out of the 24
:25:17. > :25:21.University technical schools around the country? I do indeed agree with
:25:21. > :25:25.him, but when you look at those schools and the increased numbers
:25:25. > :25:27.of apprenticeships and the work experience scheme and the support
:25:27. > :25:32.provided through the work programme, if you look at the additional
:25:32. > :25:36.measures announced recently, what this shows is we have a government
:25:36. > :25:42.now that recognises the problem of youth unemployment and understand
:25:42. > :25:44.its severity and is doing something about it. Does the Minister think
:25:44. > :25:48.the record level of youth unemployment is being made worse by
:25:48. > :25:53.the botched ending of the connections courier service in
:25:53. > :25:56.which the service what went wrong, no replacement for Tim place and no
:25:56. > :25:59.transistor three plan put in place? What I would say is that the
:25:59. > :26:04.Honourable Gentleman is talking about the causes for youth
:26:04. > :26:08.unemployment and should look back to when the increase started in
:26:08. > :26:18.2003/04 and he should ask a question, why did their policies
:26:18. > :26:19.
:26:19. > :26:22.Throughout the development of the new personal independence payment
:26:22. > :26:27.which will replace Disability Living Allowance, we have had
:26:27. > :26:36.extensive discussions with disabled people, their families and
:26:36. > :26:41.organisations representing them. Many organisations into how
:26:41. > :26:46.Disability Living Allowance can fail to support people has been
:26:46. > :26:51.discovered. We will continue to try and help support disabled people.
:26:51. > :26:55.On the recent hardest her -- head March I met with constituents who
:26:55. > :27:00.had the impression that this allowance would end all together
:27:00. > :27:05.and not be replaced by the pest not independence payment. Does the
:27:05. > :27:10.Minister agree that in representing these disabled constituents,
:27:10. > :27:15.organisations have to ensure that they communicate clearly with those
:27:15. > :27:19.who may be affected, some of the most vulnerable in our were society.
:27:19. > :27:24.I thank my friend for these comments. It is important that
:27:24. > :27:28.organisations that were with us in the development of this new payment
:27:28. > :27:34.use that have to make sure people are well informed. We need a new
:27:34. > :27:41.approach to Disability Living Allowance. We are still waiting to
:27:41. > :27:46.hear exactly what the opposition's plan would be. The organisation of
:27:46. > :27:52.which they honourable lady spoke of sounded like organisations
:27:52. > :27:55.representing people whose condition is a condition which does not the
:27:55. > :28:01.hugely. There are people on Disability Living Allowance who
:28:01. > :28:06.have conditions are like, for example, multiple sclerosis, we can
:28:06. > :28:09.be hugely better and hugely worse. How much conversation has she had
:28:09. > :28:14.with organisations representing people with fluctuating conditions
:28:14. > :28:19.as well as those with conditions which are progressive. Thank you
:28:19. > :28:23.for your question. I only read them out quickly was to not occur the
:28:23. > :28:29.wrath of Mr Speaker. I would like to reassure her that I understand
:28:29. > :28:33.the point she is making. I am meeting with organisations dealing
:28:33. > :28:38.with people were who have fluctuating conditions. We are
:28:38. > :28:42.looking to see how we can make sure that the new personal independence
:28:42. > :28:52.plan has something built into it which serves people with these
:28:52. > :28:59.fluctuating conditions. Number 13. Our proposed changes will equalise
:28:59. > :29:03.women's pension age with a men's more rapidly. Women born at -- or
:29:03. > :29:10.another 6th March 1954 will have a pension age of 56 and others will
:29:10. > :29:14.have a pension age of up to one month less. I highlight the plight
:29:15. > :29:19.of 33,000 women born in one month in 1954 who will be the worst
:29:19. > :29:25.affected under the new pension retirement rules. Half a million
:29:25. > :29:29.women in total will be affected, to the effect of one year or more than
:29:29. > :29:33.expected. When the get their pensions they will be a lot better
:29:33. > :29:38.off than they would have been under the party opposite. But what can we
:29:38. > :29:44.do, for this particular group, he will have to wait an additional two
:29:44. > :29:46.years for the pension? honourable friend raised this
:29:46. > :29:52.question in the debate last Wednesday when we were startled
:29:52. > :29:57.when she declared an interest in the question. In terms of the group
:29:57. > :30:03.of 33,000 women, is the where to address that specific group, we
:30:03. > :30:07.would find that a woman of one month before or later than that
:30:07. > :30:14.would then ask for a change. The short answer is that to delay the
:30:15. > :30:21.whole thing to 2020 as some have suggested would require 20 -- �10
:30:21. > :30:26.billion. Their early day motion calling the Government to rethink
:30:26. > :30:32.these unfair changes to the pension system have been signed by 180
:30:32. > :30:35.honourable members. More than 10,000 people have presented a
:30:35. > :30:41.petition to Downing Street asking the government to think again and
:30:41. > :30:46.the campaign is backed by charities. If it Government can U-turn on
:30:46. > :30:52.other things, then surely they can listen and act upon the concerns of
:30:52. > :30:55.women approaching retirement now with fear and trepidation. To the
:30:55. > :31:01.extent that we know what it honourable ladies policy is, it
:31:01. > :31:04.appears to be to put it off for a decade. Unfortunately, one of the
:31:04. > :31:07.problems with the approach of the last government on many difficult
:31:07. > :31:12.issues was to put them off and assume that somebody else would
:31:12. > :31:16.deal with it. This would be another �10 billion which would have to be
:31:16. > :31:26.paid by tomorrow's taxpayers. It does she think that is a fair
:31:26. > :31:28.
:31:28. > :31:35.burden? Question number 15. No such estimate has been made, and I
:31:35. > :31:38.should perhaps remind the lady that Disability Living Allowance are not
:31:38. > :31:43.related to a medical diagnosis. They are about considering people
:31:43. > :31:50.as individuals and looking at their impact of the disabilities they
:31:50. > :31:54.have to live individual lives. -- independent lives. They do not
:31:54. > :31:58.necessarily correlate to an individual diagnosis. In the course
:31:58. > :32:04.of the committee, the Minister indicated that the reason for doing
:32:04. > :32:11.this was not about savings and said he did not expect to make any
:32:11. > :32:17.savings from this proposal. People who fall ill suddenly with onset
:32:17. > :32:21.conditions and do occur additional costs, not people who are long-term
:32:21. > :32:27.unemployed or welfare dependent, will she say why she is making this
:32:27. > :32:31.change if it is not to make savings? I think what I said it was
:32:31. > :32:37.that there would be some savings but they are modest. The principle
:32:37. > :32:44.of a six-month qualifying period was not intended ever to deny
:32:44. > :32:54.disabled people help us in the short-term. That's comes from means
:32:54. > :32:56.
:32:56. > :33:01.tested support. Will my honourable friend tell us if the six-month
:33:01. > :33:05.qualifying period will allow for special cases such as a those with
:33:05. > :33:09.a terminal illness you may not survive six-month? I can reassure
:33:09. > :33:13.my honourable friend that that will be the case and that will be a
:33:13. > :33:23.provision that will carry on from the Disability Living Allowance.
:33:23. > :33:28.am sure this is not the Government's intention to leave
:33:28. > :33:32.nearly is 7,000 cancer patients potentially up to �94 a week worse
:33:32. > :33:42.off. Today Macmillan Cancer Trust warned that this was their
:33:42. > :33:47.consequence of the policy. Can this be modified? The honourable lady
:33:47. > :33:51.has raised the issue with regards to employment support allowance. We
:33:51. > :33:55.will obviously be making sure that people who are in the most
:33:55. > :34:01.difficult circumstances continued to receive the support that the
:34:01. > :34:04.required through the support group. What is absolutely vital is that we
:34:04. > :34:10.do not analysed people based on the condition that they have got, we
:34:10. > :34:17.look at the problems that the encounter living independent lives.
:34:17. > :34:20.Number 16. Both the department and myself received a number of
:34:20. > :34:24.communications from customers and their representatives asking about
:34:24. > :34:30.our policies on the use of 0845 numbers and whether we have
:34:30. > :34:33.considered changing to other numbers. I have asked the
:34:33. > :34:39.Department to undertake an internal review about areas of those numbers
:34:39. > :34:43.to see what other options are available. Given that benefit plans
:34:43. > :34:48.normally have no access to at landline and calls from mobile can
:34:48. > :34:52.cost as much as 40 p and the country be kept waiting, should we
:34:52. > :35:01.not do more and consider talking to their television -- telephone
:35:01. > :35:04.helpline to make faster progress? agree with honourable gentleman, we
:35:04. > :35:07.do know offer a ring back service to anybody who is concerned about
:35:07. > :35:12.the cost of the call they are making. There is a genuine issue
:35:12. > :35:20.here and it is one I have asked the department to look at to see if
:35:20. > :35:25.there are better options available. No. 17. A number of State colder
:35:25. > :35:28.groups have expressed concern about the changes we propose also said a
:35:28. > :35:34.majority agree that we need to increase the state pension age more
:35:34. > :35:38.quickly. I wonder if the Minister is aware that 1,200 women in my
:35:38. > :35:41.constituency are going to lose out, does he understand that they are
:35:41. > :35:45.angry and feel cheated that pension payments that they had every reason
:35:45. > :35:52.to believe that they have paid for and where to, well no not be paid
:35:52. > :35:55.to them. What does he say to those 1,200 women? One of their very
:35:55. > :35:58.significant changes that those women will have seen through the
:35:58. > :36:02.course of their working life is a generation ago they would have
:36:02. > :36:07.expected to drop a state pension for six years less than they will
:36:07. > :36:10.now draw. They will still get the state pension for exactly the same
:36:10. > :36:20.light of time as someone a generation ago would have expected
:36:20. > :36:21.
:36:21. > :36:26.to. We are trying to beat the year. -- beefier. The state pension in
:36:26. > :36:32.2020, bringing it forward to 2018 would not help the government's
:36:32. > :36:38.target of getting the public finances in balance by 2015, it
:36:38. > :36:44.will impact a shop -- small number of women. Will they revert to their
:36:45. > :36:50.coal Allison agreement? This has been raised before. When he is
:36:50. > :36:54.correct to say this, I will draw his attention to the national debt
:36:54. > :36:58.at their end of this Parliament under previous projections was 1.4
:36:58. > :37:06.trillion pounds. If we were to delay this change it is another �10
:37:06. > :37:12.billion we would have to add to that. What noticed as the Minister
:37:12. > :37:17.believe is required if changes to the state pension age? I am
:37:17. > :37:24.grateful for this being raised. We ask is in our green paper. We are
:37:24. > :37:30.looking at future changes to 67 and 68. We believe that has to happen
:37:30. > :37:40.sooner. We are reflecting on what the current balance is on giving
:37:40. > :37:43.
:37:43. > :37:49.fear notice. Question 18. I would like to answer this question and in
:37:49. > :37:53.19 together. The quality impact together was published on 9th May
:37:53. > :37:58.1920 11. It does not contain a specific estimate on impact on
:37:58. > :38:06.homelessness cos we cannot anticipate that. One of the big
:38:07. > :38:12.problems across the board for people under the age of 35, who
:38:12. > :38:16.meet not be able to reduce their housing costs are and therefore
:38:16. > :38:19.could face eviction. That would put more pressure on local authorities
:38:19. > :38:25.which are already under pressure because of the lack of affordable
:38:25. > :38:31.housing. Has the Government got any plan to help local-authority is me
:38:31. > :38:36.does increased pressures? We do. My honourable friend who has that
:38:36. > :38:43.strong track records in this House has raised an important point. We
:38:43. > :38:53.will added �190 million to local authority payments. This money will
:38:53. > :38:53.
:38:53. > :38:59.help difficult cases. I welcome to answer, but is it not more likely
:38:59. > :39:09.that a third or more or of this budget will be required for the
:39:09. > :39:09.
:39:09. > :39:14.disabled? That is without other vulnerable groups. Is there not a
:39:14. > :39:18.case for exempting certain groups from is altogether? I can assure my
:39:18. > :39:25.friend that certain disabled groups have a blanket exemption. Those who
:39:25. > :39:35.qualify for the severe disablement premium are exempted. There is a
:39:35. > :39:42.particular problem in will rule area it -- areas. So North Wales
:39:42. > :39:48.Housing Association has pointed out that, in particularly seaside towns,
:39:48. > :39:56.there is no flexibility. Although a GMOs are one response to this
:39:56. > :40:01.problem, young people will have arranged to look at. Single people
:40:01. > :40:09.aged 25 up to 34, one-third lives with their parents. That may be an
:40:09. > :40:13.option for some. Some may use the government's rent a Room scheme.
:40:13. > :40:23.Some may be able to rent a room from a social landlords, something
:40:23. > :40:27.
:40:27. > :40:32.we are looking to explore or more. Mr Gerry Sutcliffe. Number 22.
:40:32. > :40:37.of the things I was surprised to discover in the past few years is
:40:37. > :40:40.that the department does not keep any record of the nationality of
:40:40. > :40:50.people who claim benefits. This is something we are now moving to
:40:50. > :40:50.
:40:50. > :40:55.address. That is indeed a scandal that we do not know how many EU
:40:55. > :40:58.nationals are claiming benefits. Is it not completely wrong for any
:40:58. > :41:03.eastern European citizen to be working in this country with his
:41:03. > :41:10.family and children back home in Poland or for ever and claiming and
:41:10. > :41:15.receiving child benefit at the British taxpayer's expense?
:41:16. > :41:20.Speaker, my friend pits his finger on one of the anomalies of the
:41:20. > :41:25.European system. This causes concern around Europe. I have had
:41:25. > :41:29.many conversations of the last few months with fellow ministers and
:41:29. > :41:39.there is lamenting debate about their it need for real changes
:41:39. > :41:42.
:41:42. > :41:52.which was set out when and we're benefit should be paid. Number 23.
:41:52. > :41:55.Mr Speaker, they issue of youth unemployment is one which is a
:41:55. > :42:05.great matter of importance to this Government and the nation. We are
:42:05. > :42:06.
:42:06. > :42:09.taking urgent steps to seek to Despite excellent apprenticeship
:42:09. > :42:13.schemes, in Wales, youth unemployment is sadly still the
:42:13. > :42:17.highest percentage of unemployment of young people in the United
:42:17. > :42:22.Kingdom as a whole. Given what he did say earlier about potential
:42:22. > :42:27.jobs being created, in the absence of a strong regional policy and the
:42:27. > :42:31.scrapping of the Labour job schemes, how can he guarantee that jobs to
:42:32. > :42:34.young people will go where most young people are unemployed?
:42:34. > :42:39.need two things to solve the problem of youth unemployment, a
:42:39. > :42:42.strategy for growth, which was at the heart of the Budget put forward
:42:42. > :42:46.by the chance of the Exchequer few weeks ago, and we will continue to
:42:46. > :42:50.seek measures which encourages business to create jobs in this
:42:50. > :42:53.country. Alongside that, we will continue to pursue measures through
:42:53. > :42:56.work experience, the work programme and other support for young people
:42:56. > :43:06.to make sure they are as well- equipped as possible to take
:43:06. > :43:11.
:43:11. > :43:16.advantage of the vacancies whether Mr Speaker, last week we launched
:43:16. > :43:22.the biggest single welfare-to-work programme that the UK as ever had,
:43:22. > :43:27.in contrast to a number of confusing and what prescriptions,
:43:27. > :43:31.we are adopting a flexible approach that will engage paying providers
:43:31. > :43:35.by results, which we have explained, and giving them the freedom to
:43:35. > :43:40.innovate. We believe it will deliver effective and cost-
:43:40. > :43:46.effective support to help claimants with sustainable employment. Rising
:43:46. > :43:50.fuel costs, 20 % VAT, cuts to winter fuel allowance and local
:43:50. > :43:54.government budgets will all hit vital frontline services used by
:43:54. > :43:59.pensioners. I would be grateful if the minister would explain to the
:43:59. > :44:03.pensioners of West Lancashire why the government needs a new material
:44:03. > :44:05.deprivation indicator to tell them what they already know, that the
:44:05. > :44:12.policies of this Conservative government are hitting them over
:44:12. > :44:17.and over again. Mr Speaker, the Honourable Lady is right that we
:44:17. > :44:21.did not reverse Labour's planned cut in the winter fuel payment, we
:44:21. > :44:26.did reverse into the cold weather payment which pays �25 per week
:44:26. > :44:29.every time the temperature falls below zero and we ended up paying
:44:29. > :44:39.over �400 million to Kohl, vulnerable pensioners, money that
:44:39. > :44:39.
:44:39. > :44:43.the party opposite would not have spent. In the mindset of the big
:44:43. > :44:52.society, what is there that the figures for the work programme have
:44:52. > :45:00.come from the voluntary sector. There is huge evidence that two of
:45:00. > :45:05.the main providers are voluntary sector based, and they will beat in
:45:05. > :45:08.the voluntary sector. This will be the biggest boost to the big
:45:08. > :45:15.society and now we hit the opposite side are rethinking themselves on
:45:15. > :45:19.welfare and we hope they have good things to say about that as well.
:45:19. > :45:25.Mr Speaker, the cap on overall benefits and the Welfare Reform
:45:25. > :45:28.Bill is an important part. Yesterday it was said on television
:45:28. > :45:33.there would be a significant U-turn and there would be exemptions, and
:45:33. > :45:37.pressed on the detail the set this, well, it's where ever we think that,
:45:37. > :45:43.you know, there's something happening that is on Rhys -- and
:45:43. > :45:47.desirable. I don't wish to be pedantic, but that is not a clear
:45:47. > :45:53.plan for reform. Will we have the amendments for the new proposal on
:45:53. > :45:57.the table by Wednesday? It is good to see him again. I'm glad he has
:45:57. > :46:02.finally made it to the dispatch box. He should not believe everything he
:46:02. > :46:06.reads in the media. The reality is that this policy is not changing
:46:07. > :46:11.because it is a good policy. The reality is that nearly half of
:46:11. > :46:15.those of working age are working her less than 26,000 a year and
:46:15. > :46:19.they pay taxes to see some people on benefits earning more than that
:46:19. > :46:24.figure. I say to the Right Honourable Gentleman that as we
:46:24. > :46:29.proceed with this through the report and third reading it, I look
:46:29. > :46:32.forward to seeing him support this and support and vote for the
:46:32. > :46:36.welfare bill on third reading because he believes that those on
:46:36. > :46:42.benefits should not be earning more than those who are living and
:46:42. > :46:45.working hard. His welfare reform bill would be easier to support if
:46:45. > :46:50.we knew what difference it was going to make in the real world,
:46:50. > :46:53.but we don't know what it means for child care, people with
:46:53. > :46:57.disabilities and now we don't know what it will mean for the benefit
:46:57. > :47:01.cap either. Since the Secretary of State took office their housing
:47:01. > :47:05.benefit bill has been projected to go up by the Treasury by a �1
:47:05. > :47:10.billion. Now if he can't tell us what his policy on exemptions is,
:47:10. > :47:16.will he tell us what the policy is actually going to cost the
:47:16. > :47:18.taxpayer? As I said to him, we are not changing the policy. If my
:47:18. > :47:21.Noble Friend was referring to what we are already doing with housing
:47:21. > :47:27.benefit, which is a discretionary payment to make sure that the
:47:27. > :47:33.policies these dim properly. Hang on a second, he can't have it both
:47:33. > :47:36.cutting housing benefit enough. He would like to talk to these
:47:36. > :47:40.honourable friend the things we are cutting it too much. This is the
:47:40. > :47:43.problem with the opposition right now. They have it all ways. Today
:47:43. > :47:47.we have a speech from the leader of the opposition in which they will
:47:47. > :47:52.be tough on benefit claimants and those not working will not get
:47:52. > :47:58.social housing. I simply say the whole idea of welfare and change is
:47:58. > :48:03.a lot of wriggly worm you turns from the opposition. If we are to
:48:03. > :48:13.maximise progress we needs Pete the progress -- questions and pithy
:48:13. > :48:14.
:48:14. > :48:18.answers. Honourable Members have raised the issue of women born in
:48:18. > :48:22.1954 will have to wait two years extra for their pension, so why
:48:22. > :48:27.should they find themselves out of work after the later retirement
:48:27. > :48:31.level, so at the jobseeker's allowance would be poor. How will
:48:31. > :48:35.this relate to disadvantage women in this way? Dr Noble Lady is right
:48:35. > :48:42.that there is often an interaction between the rules for benefits such
:48:42. > :48:45.as jobseeker's allowance, but the point I would make is that where
:48:45. > :48:50.people of state pension age has risen, the rules are as they have
:48:50. > :48:53.always been. There will be provision if it is jobseeker's
:48:53. > :48:58.allowance or an occupational pension. We are not talking about
:48:58. > :49:02.leaving people with nothing to live on. The mental health charity Mind
:49:02. > :49:06.have suggested changes to the work capability assessment to capture
:49:06. > :49:09.the complexity of those suffering from mental illness. Wish -- what
:49:09. > :49:15.reassurance can the Minister give us about how the process can be
:49:15. > :49:18.enhanced to reflect those needs? have already introduced mental
:49:19. > :49:22.health champions in the network of health care professionals carrying
:49:22. > :49:25.out the assessments, and we believe that the changes introduced at the
:49:25. > :49:28.start of April will mean more people with mental health
:49:29. > :49:32.conditions and the support group. But we now have a new set of
:49:32. > :49:35.proposals from the charity which we asked them to bring forward to us
:49:35. > :49:42.and we are considering them carefully and had to respond in the
:49:42. > :49:46.near future. One important use for crisis loans is to cover
:49:46. > :49:50.emergencies where claimants have no money and there is a delay in the
:49:50. > :49:54.pay of their benefits or tax credits. Because applications are
:49:54. > :49:58.limited to three per year there are already families in my constituency
:49:58. > :50:02.who face the prods -- prospect of the route being closed down, not
:50:02. > :50:08.because they have failed, because of systemic failures. Could a more
:50:08. > :50:11.flexible approach be brought in? recognise it is a nonsense that we
:50:12. > :50:17.have one part of the benefit system lending people money because they
:50:17. > :50:20.don't get their benefits on time. This has grown under matter -- and
:50:21. > :50:24.control. This matter will be dealt with by advance payments of the
:50:24. > :50:29.Universal Credit and clearly the idea that people can have multiple
:50:29. > :50:33.crises, up to 10 a year, is not a rational system which is why we are
:50:33. > :50:38.reforming it. Will my right Honourable Friend update the house
:50:38. > :50:42.on the progress of the work Club's initiative? If I may, can I pay
:50:42. > :50:49.tribute to my have a boyfriend for his work in establishing a national
:50:49. > :50:52.network of work clubs. There are several -- can I pay tribute to my
:50:52. > :50:56.Honourable Friend. There are several clubs around and we have a
:50:56. > :51:01.strong network that will make a real difference to people looking
:51:02. > :51:10.for clubs -- jobs and I hope their numbers will grow. I opposed
:51:10. > :51:15.changes to rental work in my eight constituencies which resulted in
:51:15. > :51:20.the closure of a local factory. For will the Minister go back to the
:51:20. > :51:24.former employees of the factory in Woolwich and tell me how many found
:51:24. > :51:29.jobs and are in employment before he goes ahead with any further
:51:29. > :51:33.closures? I would like to reassure the Honourable Gentleman that the
:51:33. > :51:37.policy of this government is to continue with the modernisation
:51:37. > :51:41.plan and that they have not been further closures of those factories.
:51:41. > :51:46.What we will be doing is carefully looking at the recommendations of
:51:46. > :51:51.the report issued last week, which included recommendations of the
:51:51. > :51:56.future of that firm, and will consult on that before we go for it
:51:56. > :51:59.and that could include what he has suggested. On behalf of my
:51:59. > :52:04.Caulfield Job Club in my constituency, a strictly voluntary
:52:04. > :52:09.effort to help people back into work and on behalf of GB job clubs
:52:09. > :52:12.which is a charity which supports other networks of clubs, can I
:52:12. > :52:19.asked the Government what they would do to make sure the state
:52:19. > :52:23.does not crush this voluntary provision. The one thing I have
:52:23. > :52:27.made sure is that there are note the Thames in JobCentre plus and
:52:27. > :52:30.the dw pay that there are no monitoring systems. We are there to
:52:30. > :52:34.provide local encouragement and sometimes initial funding to clubs
:52:34. > :52:38.to get running her but after that it is very much up to them to shape
:52:38. > :52:44.their destiny and it is for us to champion their success but not
:52:44. > :52:49.interfere. The WP's own research on the future job funds publish last
:52:49. > :52:53.month demonstrated the value of government subsidy for young people
:52:53. > :52:56.during an economic crash. Does the government minister agree with the
:52:56. > :52:59.research of his own department and therefore reconsider the
:52:59. > :53:04.possibility of a word subsidy for young people if levels of
:53:04. > :53:09.employment do not improve for them in the coming year. The whole point
:53:09. > :53:13.of that was to look at what you get as value-for-money out of how many
:53:13. > :53:16.people you get back to work. We inherited a terrible situation from
:53:16. > :53:19.the last government with youth unemployment there had been rising
:53:19. > :53:22.for a number of years, so the programmes we are bringing forward
:53:22. > :53:25.that include the work programmes and special provisions in the work
:53:25. > :53:30.programme and others like the innovation fund will help them more
:53:30. > :53:33.than lavishing huge amounts of money for little return. I would
:53:33. > :53:37.like to ask the Minister what the government was doing to reduce
:53:37. > :53:45.conflict between parents in their dealings with the Child Support
:53:45. > :53:48.At the heart of the reforms we are looking at at the moment is
:53:48. > :53:52.reducing conflict by having support for parents to work collaboratively
:53:52. > :53:55.at the time of a family break down. That is something all sides of the
:53:55. > :54:02.house can welcome and has certainly been welcomed by those
:54:02. > :54:04.organisations working with families and the charitable sector.
:54:04. > :54:12.Would the minister outlined to the House what the terms of reference
:54:12. > :54:22.are given by the DW p and what the cost of the report was and if the
:54:22. > :54:28.main beneficiary was implemented. slightly missed the end of that
:54:28. > :54:31.question, but we have commissioned the report to look at generally the
:54:31. > :54:35.way employment programmes were supporting severely disabled people
:54:35. > :54:40.which included all the programmes that are currently run by the
:54:40. > :54:42.department. It is a very fragmented bunch of programmes and I think an
:54:42. > :54:47.excellent job has been done in pulling it together and
:54:47. > :54:51.recommending the strategy and the way forward. We did remunerate
:54:51. > :54:58.radar because they had to have additional help to support them in
:54:58. > :55:00.the running of their business while they were helping us. I welcome the
:55:00. > :55:05.proposed reform of the benefits system, but how will Universal
:55:05. > :55:08.Credit help people who have been out of work to take up part-time or
:55:08. > :55:12.flexible work if they are unable to take up a full-time job for any
:55:12. > :55:16.reason? I am glad my Honourable Friend has brought the matter
:55:16. > :55:19.forward. The reality about Universal Credit is that it is
:55:19. > :55:23.aimed at those who cannot take on full-time work or those who are
:55:23. > :55:26.transition in back to full work having been out of work for a while.
:55:26. > :55:30.It will help everybody take up work at a number of different hours and
:55:30. > :55:35.suits their own conditions and is particularly good for lone parents
:55:35. > :55:39.and they will do better than they do at the moment. The government
:55:39. > :55:45.benefit cap will force many of my constituents to leave their homes
:55:45. > :55:51.for many years, up rooting families for jobs and communities. According
:55:51. > :55:58.to his colleagues -- colleague, such people are making lifestyle
:55:58. > :56:01.choices. Is that the government view? The position on the benefit
:56:01. > :56:05.cap is straightforward. It is quite simple, and that is to say that
:56:05. > :56:09.those who are on benefit should not receive more money than those who
:56:09. > :56:12.are working and paying their taxes. They are of course exemptions to
:56:12. > :56:17.that. We are said those who are making the right efforts to get
:56:17. > :56:21.back to work, on tax credits, disabled, war widows, they are
:56:21. > :56:27.exempted from this. But the rest of them there is the simple principle,
:56:27. > :56:30.if you can, you should be helping them to help them to work and
:56:30. > :56:35.�26,000 earns a reasonable sum of money. How many people are being
:56:35. > :56:39.tricked out of money being offered lump sums instead of their pension
:56:39. > :56:49.scheme? What steps is the government taking into these
:56:49. > :56:58.incentive feist transfers out of We are determined to drive out the
:56:58. > :57:03.back -- bad practice whereby, as he says, are given a load of cash, and
:57:03. > :57:09.then it is not worth anything to them. We are looking very hard as
:57:09. > :57:16.to whether regulatory change is needed. Will there be more work
:57:16. > :57:20.place inspections next year or fewer? Weak are seeking to reduce
:57:20. > :57:26.the number of proactive work place inspections by a third. We have
:57:26. > :57:31.been clear about that. By removing inspection of low risk premises
:57:32. > :57:37.with no promises. Then the Health and Safety Executive can
:57:37. > :57:40.concentrate the resource in a place where there is problem and we will
:57:40. > :57:44.insist on fee for fault to recover money from those employers breaking
:57:44. > :57:48.the rules. With the change from three to six months before claimant
:57:48. > :57:52.becomes eligible for the new personal independence payments, for
:57:52. > :57:57.people with a sudden onset conditions such as cancer or stroke,
:57:57. > :58:03.it may affect their family's access to carer's allowance. Will the
:58:03. > :58:09.Minister investigate ways in which loved ones can have an early access
:58:09. > :58:14.to carer's allowance? I thank her for that question. It is important
:58:14. > :58:18.we continue to view the personal independence payments are very much
:58:18. > :58:21.as something that looks at an individual and the way their
:58:21. > :58:26.condition is affecting them. We are not intending to look at particular
:58:26. > :58:30.conditions. We will however be looking very carefully at the way
:58:30. > :58:35.the introduction of the personal independence payment affect
:58:35. > :58:40.benefits and we will bear her comments in mind.
:58:41. > :58:44.The Pensions Minister may recall he met with myself and the member for
:58:44. > :58:50.Chippenham on 8th March about a modest proposal to amend the Sure
:58:50. > :58:55.Start paternity grants to parents of multiples. Can he update us?