:00:00. > :00:00.intervene, particularly in respect to the contempt of court act, 1981,
:00:00. > :00:07.and detailed guidelines are available on the CPS website.
:00:08. > :00:16.Questions to the Minister for women and equality is, Mr Stephen
:00:17. > :00:22.Patterson. Number one. With permission I will answer questions
:00:23. > :00:30.one and 12 together. The Prime Minister has set out challenging
:00:31. > :00:35.government targets to increase opportunities by 2020, including
:00:36. > :00:43.apprenticeships, employment, recruitment in the police and armed
:00:44. > :00:47.services. The Scottish Government has launched a programme integrating
:00:48. > :00:54.refugees in Scotland's communities, ensuring they have every opportunity
:00:55. > :00:59.to rebuild their lives. What similar initiatives has the UK Government
:01:00. > :01:07.taken to support refugees and fight racism? I know that my honourable
:01:08. > :01:12.friend for Watford, who works across departments, DC LG, the Home Office,
:01:13. > :01:18.is working extremely hard to support refugees in a very similar way to
:01:19. > :01:23.the one that he mentions. Research suggests that people with ethnic
:01:24. > :01:27.sounding names have to make twice the number of job applications as
:01:28. > :01:31.white Britons to get job interviews. Will he therefore discuss with the
:01:32. > :01:36.Business Secretary and others how to strengthen guidance to companies on
:01:37. > :01:45.the recruitment practices? I agree. My right honourable friend
:01:46. > :01:50.the Prime Minister has made a significant commitment in this area.
:01:51. > :01:55.Many of the country's top employers, including the civil service, are
:01:56. > :02:03.committing to recruitment processes and UCAS will be making university
:02:04. > :02:06.applications from 2017. I join my honourable friend in congratulating
:02:07. > :02:12.the government on introducing name blind to recruitment in this double
:02:13. > :02:18.service and NHS. Will he turn me in encouraging other large companies
:02:19. > :02:24.across UK to follow suit? I thank my right honourable friend for that
:02:25. > :02:28.question. He is right, we should certainly be encouraging companies
:02:29. > :02:32.across the country, not just FTSE 100 companies who seem to making
:02:33. > :02:36.significant efforts on this now, we should be looking to all companies,
:02:37. > :02:43.large and small, to look at diversity and how they can make that
:02:44. > :02:50.improvement. People from BME backgrounds make up 26% of
:02:51. > :02:56.apprenticeship applications, but only 9.6% of the total taken up.
:02:57. > :03:02.What is the Minister doing to improve these disappointing
:03:03. > :03:06.statistics? I would say that apprenticeships are extremely
:03:07. > :03:11.important parts of this government's agenda. We have a target of 3
:03:12. > :03:16.million apprenticeship starts during this Parliament. And within that,
:03:17. > :03:20.the Prime Minister has set out a commitment that this government will
:03:21. > :03:22.ensure 20% of those apprenticeship start-ups offer BME young people,
:03:23. > :03:39.which is a great step forward. The Prime Minister, as we have
:03:40. > :03:45.heard, has set a goal that in this respect of increasing by 20% the
:03:46. > :03:49.number of BME students in higher education, in our new guidelines to
:03:50. > :03:55.fair access to be published on the 11th of every, we ask him to
:03:56. > :04:00.maximise the contribution. The share of BME enrolments of the UK's
:04:01. > :04:09.institutions has risen by just over 20% to 23% between 2009 and 2015.
:04:10. > :04:24.And expenditure to widen acceptance will reach 746,000,020 17, up from
:04:25. > :04:37.444,000,020 11. -- 746 million, in 2017, up from 44 million, in 2011.
:04:38. > :04:42.Can the Minister take steps to ensure the government comes forward
:04:43. > :04:46.with new eligibility criteria as a matter of agency, to ensure all
:04:47. > :04:52.young people have the opportunity to make the most of their talents this
:04:53. > :04:56.academic year? What I can say is he seems to make a good point, which
:04:57. > :05:00.I'm more than happy to discuss with the Home Office and I see one
:05:01. > :05:07.development ministers is already here. I welcome what the Minister
:05:08. > :05:11.has said English late into the figures of applications. Does the
:05:12. > :05:16.Minister agree with me that we must not take our eye off the ball on
:05:17. > :05:21.other routes, most also encourage BME students to take courses such as
:05:22. > :05:26.apprenticeships and have equal status in those roots? I agree, one
:05:27. > :05:33.of the things I've seen with great success in Nottingham is the huge
:05:34. > :05:40.power of mentors and the roles they play, not just for BME youngsters,
:05:41. > :05:45.but for women, and there is excellent work, good evidence of the
:05:46. > :05:49.importance of mentors. I would encourage all members of this place
:05:50. > :05:53.to go out and make the case, make sure in our own schools everything
:05:54. > :06:02.is being done to make sure there's fairness and equality. The research
:06:03. > :06:04.shows that while BME students are overrepresented in university
:06:05. > :06:10.entrance figures, they tend to be in the post-92 new universities, and
:06:11. > :06:17.this week we heard the Russell group universities are per at doing
:06:18. > :06:24.outreach during Courage students from disadvantaged backgrounds to
:06:25. > :06:28.apply for their universities -- disadvantaged students. Compared to
:06:29. > :06:34.the US. Will the Minister John Whitney in seeking to address this
:06:35. > :06:43.issue -- will the Minister join with me. I'm grateful the Secretary of
:06:44. > :06:45.State education, he makes the point that the London Academy of
:06:46. > :06:52.excellence is a good example. My nearest university in and not in
:06:53. > :06:58.them, like many universities, makes positive opportunities to get in all
:06:59. > :06:59.other schools, to make sure all peoples have every opportunity. And
:07:00. > :07:11.to aim high. The government talks the talk of
:07:12. > :07:14.encouraging more black and minority students into universities, yet
:07:15. > :07:17.their recent decision to scrap maintenance grants will
:07:18. > :07:24.disproportionately affect those students. This is according to their
:07:25. > :07:26.own impact assessment. Does the Minister believe that this
:07:27. > :07:33.disproportionate impact is acceptable? I have to say I'm not
:07:34. > :07:38.familiar with the impact assessment. I'm quite surprised by it. I
:07:39. > :07:43.reiterate the point, it's imperative that we make it very clear that
:07:44. > :07:46.everybody should aim high. That is what we want to do, that is what we
:07:47. > :07:59.seek to do. The employment rate for women is at
:08:00. > :08:04.a record high, and the gender pay gap is at a record low. The
:08:05. > :08:09.government is committed to enabling women and men to fulfil their
:08:10. > :08:17.economic potential. That sounds very nice, but with women being
:08:18. > :08:22.overrepresented in sectors where low pay is prominent and persistent,
:08:23. > :08:26.what is the government doing to tackle extended occupational
:08:27. > :08:32.segregation? I am sure the honourable lady will welcome the
:08:33. > :08:36.fact that in a couple of months, 65% of the people who will benefit from
:08:37. > :08:40.the new national living wage will in fact be women, and that this is a
:08:41. > :08:47.very important step this government is taken to raise pay for the loan
:08:48. > :08:51.was paid in our country. I don't doubt my honourable friend's
:08:52. > :08:56.commitment to reducing the gender pay gap further, and I commend the
:08:57. > :09:01.Prime Minister of his position too. The reality is that my contingency
:09:02. > :09:07.women face a gender pay gap of 30%. Shouldn't this be on the agenda of
:09:08. > :09:11.every single company throughout the country and our local enterprise
:09:12. > :09:18.partnerships? She will be aware whether interest in this matter that
:09:19. > :09:22.not only are we taken steps to publish this information for
:09:23. > :09:28.companies that have more than 250 people on the payroll, but also in
:09:29. > :09:32.the sector of financial services where, as economic Secretary, I
:09:33. > :09:37.engage the most, which is the highest-paid sector with the biggest
:09:38. > :09:42.pay gap, we have actually appointed a woman to do a review on the pay
:09:43. > :09:48.and a sector come to see what further steps we can do. As might
:09:49. > :09:56.write a noble friend, the Prime Minister, says, it is transparency
:09:57. > :10:02.-- right honourable friend. These can end the gender pay gap.
:10:03. > :10:07.Campaigners aren't going away, so will the Minister raised the issue
:10:08. > :10:15.of better state pension arrangements for women with her counterpart?
:10:16. > :10:21.These women fair play? What I would say it a woman whose state pension
:10:22. > :10:28.age has garnered six years, I welcome these changes that equalise
:10:29. > :10:32.the state pension age. It will end the discrimination of women in their
:10:33. > :10:38.late 50s, that has prevented far too many of them reaching the higher
:10:39. > :10:42.paid roles in our society. What is the government doing to reduce the
:10:43. > :10:50.economic inequality which is caused by gender differences in lighting
:10:51. > :10:56.section C? -- life expectancy. We are putting more money into the NHS
:10:57. > :10:59.do ensure everyone benefits from the good health care that has resulted
:11:00. > :11:04.in one of the remarkable features of our age, which is that people are
:11:05. > :11:10.living much longer, people of both genders are living longer, and we
:11:11. > :11:17.should welcome that. Women's under participation in the labour market
:11:18. > :11:21.costing UK economy ?600 billion in lost productivity, according to
:11:22. > :11:25.their own analysis. Wilbur minister guarantee that the forthcoming
:11:26. > :11:36.budget will reverse universal credits -- will the budget. Will she
:11:37. > :11:43.ask a colleague, the Chancellor, to stop introducing a series of
:11:44. > :11:48.measures which in penalising women? I'm afraid the honourable lady, who
:11:49. > :11:55.was Mike Twain, is in fact completely wrong -- my twin. We are
:11:56. > :12:00.extending the free child care offered to so many people, we are
:12:01. > :12:06.bringing in tax free childcare for many people. I share her aspiration
:12:07. > :12:11.to unleash the economic potential of women in our economy. The OECD has
:12:12. > :12:16.said if the participation rates in terms of men and women were
:12:17. > :12:22.equalise, the economy would be 10% larger, so we are taken steps to
:12:23. > :12:28.encourage that to happen. I welcome the draft agenda page gap reporting,
:12:29. > :12:32.and while I understand the reasons why the government would not want to
:12:33. > :12:37.put in enforcement procedures for noncompliance, with the Minister say
:12:38. > :12:41.it will be kept under review, does she agree it would be
:12:42. > :12:48.counter-productive for companies not to comply to new regulations? I
:12:49. > :12:53.think the honourable gentleman makes a good point. I welcome his support
:12:54. > :12:57.this initiative, it is a voluntary scheme, we are trying to change the
:12:58. > :13:01.culture and transparency. It will mean women will be able to make the
:13:02. > :13:07.choice, if they're going to work for a company. Can I see how this
:13:08. > :13:10.company treats and and women? At a time when we have record employment
:13:11. > :13:22.for women, women have more choices. The government has already announced
:13:23. > :13:28.?40 million of funding for domestic abuse services between 2016 and
:13:29. > :13:35.2020. As well as a ?2 million grant for women's eight. We will shortly
:13:36. > :13:39.publish a refreshed files against women's strategy, setting out how we
:13:40. > :13:44.will do more to secure long-term funding for domestic violence
:13:45. > :13:50.services and support for victims. I return to the question of long-term
:13:51. > :13:54.funding, which is so important. I raised it in January, and the
:13:55. > :13:58.Minister said she was holding discussions with service providers.
:13:59. > :14:02.How those discussions progressing and when will we see an open? Can we
:14:03. > :14:11.know who is involved in those discussions? I should make it clear
:14:12. > :14:16.that central government funding for domestic abuse services has not been
:14:17. > :14:21.cut for supper I want to make it clear that no confusion over that
:14:22. > :14:24.matter. The issue is about services. I have been having discussions with
:14:25. > :14:31.local commissioners and service providers, and I will be issuing the
:14:32. > :14:39.strategy soon. The Prime Minister said in January 20 14th he would
:14:40. > :14:46.ratify the Convention as soon as the UK ban marriages. This came in June
:14:47. > :14:51.2014, so can the Minister explain the delay? There is an issue with
:14:52. > :15:04.article 44 of this convention, which is on exit teratoma -- territorial.
:15:05. > :15:17.When we have cleared that point, we will ratify it. The government has
:15:18. > :15:22.set out an assessment of the impacts of the policies of the welfare bill.
:15:23. > :15:30.Every government policy change is considered in line with legal
:15:31. > :15:35.obligations. The ISS found that with working lone parents, those of
:15:36. > :15:40.assets were more likely to lose under Universal Credit. With single
:15:41. > :15:46.parents being female, it appears to me the government's programme is
:15:47. > :15:53.once again targeting women. What representations is she making about
:15:54. > :15:59.the impact of Universal Credit? I come back to my previous comment, we
:16:00. > :16:04.are fully assessing the impacts of equality measures of the bill and of
:16:05. > :16:09.course we are meeting our wired obligations. To his point on
:16:10. > :16:13.Universal Credit, Universal Credit, he will know, supports people in
:16:14. > :16:15.employment and that applies equally to women, alongside all the
:16:16. > :16:20.additional measures we are putting in place, such as the introducing of
:16:21. > :16:26.the national wage and measures we are bringing in with increased
:16:27. > :16:33.childcare. The Minister will be aware that women's aid groups have
:16:34. > :16:36.expressed you as concerns that changes to housing benefit could
:16:37. > :16:42.force the closure of many refuges. Wilbur minister challenge her
:16:43. > :16:45.colleagues in the DWP to exempt refugees from those changes, to
:16:46. > :16:56.protect runnable women In conjunction with many discussions
:16:57. > :17:00.we have with stakeholders, we take on board all considerations and that
:17:01. > :17:11.is what the department will do in its dialogue with third-party
:17:12. > :17:19.organisations. We know that women affected by the changes to the
:17:20. > :17:23.retirement age and ministers have met on the subject of pension
:17:24. > :17:31.reform. The changes have been subject to many discussions, and the
:17:32. > :17:35.position has been made clear. Yes, and it is cloth eared in listening
:17:36. > :17:41.to the women affected by the pension changes. If she had been sitting on
:17:42. > :17:45.those benches yesterday during the debate on providing transitional
:17:46. > :17:49.protection for women affected by pensions changes, she would have
:17:50. > :17:58.heard members of her own party and members of every party here quote in
:17:59. > :18:04.individual women who had been impoverished by these changes. When
:18:05. > :18:10.will the government begin to listen? I did listen to the debate. Let's be
:18:11. > :18:14.clear about this. The government has listened to the extensive concerns
:18:15. > :18:19.that have even raised in this House. I would like to remind the House
:18:20. > :18:24.that concessions worth over ?1 billion were introduced to reduce
:18:25. > :18:29.the impact of the changes on those worst affected. The last government
:18:30. > :18:35.introduce changes following extensive debates in both Houses of
:18:36. > :18:39.Parliament. It is important to emphasise that the government has
:18:40. > :18:46.made difficult but necessary decisions in speeding up the
:18:47. > :18:50.timetable for this. Women born in 1953 and 1954 are particularly badly
:18:51. > :18:54.affected by these changes. Many of them went into work at the age of 15
:18:55. > :18:58.and will have to work over years now for accessing the pension. Will the
:18:59. > :19:06.government have another look at this? There are things that can be
:19:07. > :19:10.done if the political will is there. The government has been listening
:19:11. > :19:20.extensively to the concerns, and working with and also pension
:19:21. > :19:23.organisations. I reiterate that the government has made concessions of
:19:24. > :19:36.?1 billion which have been introduced to reduce the impact of
:19:37. > :19:41.the changes. The apprentice national minimum wage applies equally to all
:19:42. > :19:50.apprentices. From October last year, the rate increased by 21%, to ?3.30
:19:51. > :20:02.per hour. If I may say this, all of us call into schools, and one of the
:20:03. > :20:05.great things we can do is to sing out about things like the
:20:06. > :20:13.apprenticeship scheme, make it very clear that it is not confined to
:20:14. > :20:22.boys. What is on paper and what the reality is is very different. The
:20:23. > :20:27.reality is that female apprentices earned ?4.82 per hour, compared to
:20:28. > :20:37.?5.85. Another survey said that we have an ?8,400 difference in those
:20:38. > :20:40.areas of work which women are higher, here dressing etc, compared
:20:41. > :21:02.to men. -- here hairdressing. If people are being
:21:03. > :21:07.discriminated because of this, I want to know about it and we will
:21:08. > :21:12.sort it out. Can she assure me that older women are getting a fair deal
:21:13. > :21:19.when it comes to apprenticeships. Can we use these to enable return to
:21:20. > :21:22.work around caring responsibilities and look carefully at the
:21:23. > :21:27.engineering and construction sectors to make sure they are open to all.
:21:28. > :21:32.She makes a really important point. When it comes to those particular
:21:33. > :21:36.sectors, the Secretary of State and I are extremely keen to make sure we
:21:37. > :21:39.use every single opportunity and anything available to us to make the
:21:40. > :21:44.case that younger women in particular must go into these sorts
:21:45. > :21:48.of excellent work streams. We know we need to do more, we all have our
:21:49. > :21:56.part to play and that includes government. Given the apprenticeship
:21:57. > :22:00.gender pay gap for women stands at around ?2000 per year, with the
:22:01. > :22:08.Minister share my that this is where the gender pay gap begins, and can
:22:09. > :22:14.she explain why the government's new apprenticeship scheme does not
:22:15. > :22:22.include provision or targets for women? What message does this send
:22:23. > :22:27.out? It will apply to all the people it should, which is mainly
:22:28. > :22:30.employers, but also looking at providers to make sure that not only
:22:31. > :22:39.the quality of apprentices is good, but that we get everybody and
:22:40. > :22:44.anybody applying for apprenticeships, and whatever your
:22:45. > :22:53.background or ethnicity does not matter at all. We need to have a
:22:54. > :22:56.positive case to make sure that more women going to apprenticeships,
:22:57. > :23:02.particularly the high-quality ones. Should be no barrier. Unpaid carers
:23:03. > :23:09.are the backbone of our society, which is why they 2014 year act gave
:23:10. > :23:13.new rates that focus on their well-being and give them support. We
:23:14. > :23:17.have also invested ?1.6 million in a series of pilots to look at the best
:23:18. > :23:24.ways we can support those who have caring responsibilities. I have been
:23:25. > :23:30.visiting care homes who are facing unprecedented challenges. Does she
:23:31. > :23:33.agree that there is a greater burden on older carers who do valuable
:23:34. > :23:37.work. Can she tell the House what measures she will put in place to
:23:38. > :23:43.help these older carers get back into appointment when the care
:23:44. > :23:54.duties come to an end? I absolutely agree. Unpaid carers are the unsung
:23:55. > :23:58.heroes of our economy, the value of care is ?62 billion a year, and this
:23:59. > :24:03.is literally a labour of love these carers. So we have extended the rate
:24:04. > :24:09.for flexible working and the is looking at the way we can look at
:24:10. > :24:17.Bashar looking at the way we can best do this. -- looking at the way
:24:18. > :24:21.we can do this. One of my constituents plan to retire and care
:24:22. > :24:24.for her elderly mother, but she now finds her retirement date will be
:24:25. > :24:39.later than planned. Does the Minister understand what problems
:24:40. > :24:44.these pension changes are giving? I do understand the concerns there are
:24:45. > :24:49.horrendous, but she must remember that the new state pension will give
:24:50. > :24:53.650,000 women and average increase of ?416 a year on the pension, and
:24:54. > :24:58.additionally support those who take time out of employment, for example
:24:59. > :25:08.for caring roles, are doing this important work. We are absolutely
:25:09. > :25:14.committed to supporting them to start the on business. I am proud
:25:15. > :25:20.that Britain has been named the best place in Europe for female
:25:21. > :25:23.entrepreneurs. The programme enables them to take advantage of
:25:24. > :25:30.technology, to start or grow the Roman business, and we are running
:25:31. > :25:38.nationwide sessions to give female entrepreneurs access to the right
:25:39. > :25:42.support. Unemployment is at record levels, and women since 2009 have
:25:43. > :25:48.accounted for over 50% of the increase in self-employment. Will
:25:49. > :25:51.she joined me in welcoming the new review into self-employment, and
:25:52. > :25:56.work with colleagues to take forward recommendations that will help women
:25:57. > :26:03.set up businesses and thrive in them? Julie Dean is an inspiring
:26:04. > :26:17.example of this e-mail entrepreneurs we have in the UK, and leaders
:26:18. > :26:20.contribute 25 million to the UK economy. I know the honourable
:26:21. > :26:24.gentleman has been involved in recommendations, and they will be
:26:25. > :26:30.considered very carefully. Can I ask the Minister to face the House. They
:26:31. > :26:34.understand the Speaker was behind her, but face the House. For women
:26:35. > :26:41.who choose a career in business, I understand that businesses have
:26:42. > :26:46.employed Philip Hammond and to increase the number of women in UK
:26:47. > :26:49.Border Force. I wondered why the Minister thought appointing this man
:26:50. > :26:57.was the right thing to do for this particular job? Because he's
:26:58. > :27:07.excellent! We have to get away from the supposition that this is just a
:27:08. > :27:10.women's problem. This is a problem for everyone, and businesses all
:27:11. > :27:12.need to address this issue, which is why we need to have excellent people
:27:13. > :27:24.reading this investigation and making sure it is all done as fully
:27:25. > :27:29.as it can be. Whether online or off-line, all forms of bullying at
:27:30. > :27:33.unacceptable, so we are investing ?2 million to support schools address
:27:34. > :27:47.homophobic bullying more addictively. My department is
:27:48. > :27:59.supporting Stonewall's initiative to stop this in schools. Stonewall's...
:28:00. > :28:04.Did the honourable gentleman see my answer because we can firmly agree.
:28:05. > :28:09.I mentioned the ?2 million project we are funding, Stonewall are very
:28:10. > :28:23.much one of those, as are the Anne Frank trust, Barnardos, and others.
:28:24. > :28:26.They are all doing an excellent job. We are committed to closing the
:28:27. > :28:30.gender pay gap within a generation, and this is important not only for
:28:31. > :28:36.women, but for business prosperity and the health of the UK economy.
:28:37. > :28:39.That is why we are requiring from next April large employers to
:28:40. > :28:45.publish the gender pay gap and why we have been working closely with
:28:46. > :28:49.business to deliver this. Will she joined me in commending the Scottish
:28:50. > :28:52.Government for delaying recommendations in Holyrood to
:28:53. > :28:56.extend the requirement to public authorities, with more than 20
:28:57. > :29:03.employees, to publish information on their gender pay gap and pay
:29:04. > :29:09.statements? Yes, we are always happy to take on board information from
:29:10. > :29:15.anywhere, and we will announce what we're going to be doing the gender
:29:16. > :29:20.pay gap. -- in terms of public sector. As a father of a growing
:29:21. > :29:25.number of daughters, it is important to me that women can enjoy the same
:29:26. > :29:31.level of career advancement as men, which they clearly do not. Many
:29:32. > :29:38.experts and leading chief officers of leading companies believe the
:29:39. > :29:42.leading indicator is not the gender pay gap, but career advancement for
:29:43. > :29:47.women. Did we look into major companies and report the percentage
:29:48. > :29:52.of men and women at every stage within their organisation, to change
:29:53. > :29:57.the culture? This legislation will require businesses to show how many
:29:58. > :30:02.people are at every different sector of their organisation. But he is
:30:03. > :30:04.right, this starts from the beginning, where girls are given the
:30:05. > :30:09.right careers advice as to which business and set they should go
:30:10. > :30:15.into. We need to get away that there are girls jobs are boys jobs. There
:30:16. > :30:25.are just jobs. I have asked parliamentary questions to every
:30:26. > :30:29.department regarding gender pay gap is, and every department in
:30:30. > :30:32.government has gender pay gap is. Public sector employers will be
:30:33. > :30:40.required to publish the gender pay gap. Nobody will be left unaffected
:30:41. > :30:46.by this. Is the legislation broad enough to help a constituent of mine
:30:47. > :30:59.who separated from her boyfriend recently, and she now has a
:31:00. > :31:08.-- a to let sign outside her House because she is on a 0-hours
:31:09. > :31:13.contracts at sports direct. I think that is disgraceful. I would like to
:31:14. > :31:21.see legislation to ensure that people who operate 0-hours contracts
:31:22. > :31:27.will not put her in jeopardy, and people like. Unlike the Labour Party
:31:28. > :31:32.before us, we have taken steps to address this. People who use these
:31:33. > :31:45.contracts will be included as part of the legislation. Science and
:31:46. > :31:50.maths A-level entries increased by 12,005 years. The government is
:31:51. > :31:56.determined to encourage... By 2020 we want to see a 20% increase in
:31:57. > :31:59.girl entries in size and maths, and we will have a range of support to
:32:00. > :32:06.schools. There are some fantastic stem
:32:07. > :32:12.schools in my region, including Atwood Academy, which I visited
:32:13. > :32:14.recently and another I visited with the Secretary of State. Will she
:32:15. > :32:20.join me in praising these schools which are helping pupils consider
:32:21. > :32:27.careers in stem by finding imaginative ways by showing pupils
:32:28. > :32:30.the possibilities of STEM, participating in workshops. Can I
:32:31. > :32:37.thank my honourable friend and I welcome the opportunity to join her
:32:38. > :32:44.in praising those groups in their work in Stem. I was impressed in my
:32:45. > :32:49.visit to see how they engage pupils in Stem, science and maths, and how
:32:50. > :32:54.they promote Stem to pupils. I am sure the whole house will agree that
:32:55. > :32:58.Stem provides rewarding and fantastic career opportunities for
:32:59. > :33:01.women and girls but studies show that without some personal
:33:02. > :33:07.experience of Stem careers, girls are unlikely to consider them
:33:08. > :33:09.seriously. So why has her Government abolished face-to-face careers
:33:10. > :33:15.advice and made work experience something girls have to make
:33:16. > :33:19.themselves? Will she bring back mandatory work experience? We are
:33:20. > :33:25.going to go much further, Mr Speaker, because we have introduced
:33:26. > :33:27.and are funding the and enterprise company, investing ?70 million over
:33:28. > :33:30.the course of this Parliament to make sure that young men and women
:33:31. > :33:36.are inspired by those coming into the schools, by work experience
:33:37. > :33:39.opportunities, by finding out more, by the future programme. We have
:33:40. > :33:43.been discussing the gender pay gap and I think it is worth noting that
:33:44. > :33:46.those working in science or technological careers are paid on
:33:47. > :33:51.average 19% more than other professions, so I can think we can
:33:52. > :33:57.all agree we want more girls to go into science and tech careers.
:33:58. > :34:01.The Government is investing an extra one billion plan by 2020 to help
:34:02. > :34:07.hard-working families with the Jost of Kyle grid childcare, including
:34:08. > :34:10.doubling the amount for three and four-year-olds. Tax-free childcare
:34:11. > :34:15.will benefit around 2 million families, up to ?2000 per child and
:34:16. > :34:21.many families will be able to claim 85% of childcare costs through
:34:22. > :34:24.Universal Credit. Can I thank the Secretary of State for the extra ?30
:34:25. > :34:28.million made available to councils like mine in Staffordshire to roll
:34:29. > :34:31.out this childcare plan sooner. Does she agree this will help thousands
:34:32. > :34:35.of hard-working families across the country? And will she particularly
:34:36. > :34:39.look at what can be done to help families with disabled children and
:34:40. > :34:42.children with special needs? I thank my honourable friend very much
:34:43. > :34:47.indeed, he is right to say we are investing more in childcare.
:34:48. > :34:52.Tax-free childcare, the amounts if you have a disabled child, it is
:34:53. > :34:57.?4000 per child and of course, in the course of this last Parliament
:34:58. > :35:05.and this, we are now rolling out the education and health care plans for
:35:06. > :35:09.children and those aged 0- 25 with more complex dates and we are very
:35:10. > :35:13.clear that our childcare needs mean providers have to cater more bag of
:35:14. > :35:20.loot properly that those children with special needs. -- properly. Mr
:35:21. > :35:23.Speaker, the financial Secretary to the Treasury has written to the
:35:24. > :35:26.European Commission and other member states are setting out our strong
:35:27. > :35:31.view that member states should have full discretion over what rate of
:35:32. > :35:36.VAT they can apply to these products and this should be considered in the
:35:37. > :35:41.context of the commission's action plan on VAT, which we expect to be
:35:42. > :35:45.published in March this year. Frankly, I think a lot of women
:35:46. > :35:49.across this country will be rather disappointed with the minister's
:35:50. > :35:52.response. Will she guarantee that the Prime Minister or the Chancellor
:35:53. > :35:56.will personally come back to this House with a statement once the
:35:57. > :35:59.commission have responded to our request, so the public know where we
:36:00. > :36:05.stand before the referendum takes place? Well, of course, the
:36:06. > :36:09.Government does believe that this is something where we want to take
:36:10. > :36:13.action and I am sure that she will welcome the fact that the Chancellor
:36:14. > :36:20.has already announced a new ?50 million annual fund to support
:36:21. > :36:26.women's charities -- ?15 million, that is for the interim while we
:36:27. > :36:34.tackle this on a unanimous basis across Europe. Urgent question, Mr
:36:35. > :36:38.Alex Cunningham. To ask the Minister to make a statement about assistance
:36:39. > :36:39.from the EU Solidarity fund for flood