:00:00. > :00:11.support in order to improve the care they are giving. Thank you. Order,
:00:12. > :00:16.urgent question. Margaret Greenwood. Secretary of State for Work and
:00:17. > :00:21.Pensions for his plans to close job offices and the impact it will have.
:00:22. > :00:26.The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. Thank you, Mr Speaker.
:00:27. > :00:30.Yesterday's announcement confirmed the proposals that were published in
:00:31. > :00:33.January. These changes will mean that the DWP will be offered a more
:00:34. > :00:38.efficient servers while delivering good value for the taxpayer, saving
:00:39. > :00:43.over ?140 million per year for the next ten years. Eight out of ten
:00:44. > :00:49.claims for job-seeker allowance and 99% of applications are now made on
:00:50. > :00:54.line. This means that the DWP buildings are used much less, with
:00:55. > :00:58.20% of the estate currently under utilised. Our estate plans must
:00:59. > :01:04.reflect the way customers interact with the GW P now and in the future,
:01:05. > :01:10.not the past. I can assure the House that these changes will not lead to
:01:11. > :01:15.reduction to the number of staff. To continue improving the service
:01:16. > :01:18.provided to its customers, job centres are actively recruiting in
:01:19. > :01:23.many areas. These changes are being made in consultation with the DWP
:01:24. > :01:27.employees and their trade unions. This will ensure the important
:01:28. > :01:30.connections that job centre staff have available committee are
:01:31. > :01:39.preserved and customer services can be maintained. DWP PFI contract
:01:40. > :01:42.expires next month and this gives us an opportunity to review how we
:01:43. > :01:46.deliver our services. We have sought to rationalise our estate anyway
:01:47. > :01:51.that delivers value for the taxpayer and makes best use of the safe
:01:52. > :01:54.available, whilst continuing to deliver vital support our claimants
:01:55. > :02:00.and enabling delivery of our reform agenda. Thank you. You will recall
:02:01. > :02:04.that in December last year the Government announced they were
:02:05. > :02:09.planning to close half of the job centres and Glasgow. In January,
:02:10. > :02:14.they set up plans further closures. One in ten job centres across the
:02:15. > :02:19.UK. This has the potential of the loss of 750 jobs. Yesterday the
:02:20. > :02:23.Department for Work and Pensions of data. Six of the original job
:02:24. > :02:31.centres earmarked for closure will remain open and two additional job
:02:32. > :02:35.centres that were to stay open, are added to the list. The impact of the
:02:36. > :02:40.closures will be felt by the purest and most honourable in our society.
:02:41. > :02:42.By causing such a large estate, the Government would be forcing
:02:43. > :02:46.claimants to travel further to access the vital services that they
:02:47. > :02:50.need. Impacting on the lives of sick and disabled people, carers and
:02:51. > :02:56.parents of young children. Will the Minister committed now published its
:02:57. > :02:59.the quality analysis for each site being closed. That is a secret and
:03:00. > :03:07.to be made public. 1 million claimants in work deserves a process
:03:08. > :03:11.where people may be required to attend job centres. What assess has
:03:12. > :03:17.a made on the demand for job centre services as a result of increased in
:03:18. > :03:22.work conditionality? The decision to close job centres on the scale at
:03:23. > :03:26.the same time of accelerating the role out of Universal Credit makes
:03:27. > :03:29.no sense. It is not good enough to quote figures about online claims to
:03:30. > :03:33.justify closure plans. Universal Credit will place other demands on
:03:34. > :03:36.staff who will have to assess whether self-employed people
:03:37. > :03:39.claiming Universal Credit have a viable business plan. What
:03:40. > :03:43.assessment has me made about the increased demand placed on job
:03:44. > :03:46.centre staff as a result of the roll out of Universal Credit. The
:03:47. > :03:52.closures will have an impact of jobs. With the outline a number of
:03:53. > :03:57.jobs that will be lost in front-line staff and also in the corporate
:03:58. > :04:00.centre sites as a result of the new hub strategy, the corporate centre.
:04:01. > :04:06.The Government must immediately posit these closures to allow proper
:04:07. > :04:11.scrutiny of their plans. I will begin with the first point she makes
:04:12. > :04:17.which is about job centre plus staff. The reality is that in every
:04:18. > :04:23.nation and region, there will be an increase in the number of job centre
:04:24. > :04:28.staff from the beginning of this process to the end of this process.
:04:29. > :04:36.Job numbers are going up here as we roll out Universal Credit. She talks
:04:37. > :04:41.about 750 job losses. Only a small minority of those are likely to be
:04:42. > :04:45.redundancies within front line job centre staff. This is in a period,
:04:46. > :04:51.she asks how many, I think the range we're looking at is 80 to 100 or so.
:04:52. > :04:54.I do not want to be too precise on that. That is the number we are
:04:55. > :05:02.looking at at a maximum and we hope to bring that down. The fact is that
:05:03. > :05:06.in terms of these reforms, they are done in a way that takes into
:05:07. > :05:12.account the changes in the welfare system. The rolling out of the
:05:13. > :05:16.Universal Credit service. It is absolutely right that we make use of
:05:17. > :05:20.the fact that it is the end of a contract, we have an opportunity to
:05:21. > :05:27.find savings, this is taxpayer 's money that we are talking about and
:05:28. > :05:32.what we want to do is find savings in DWP's state budget and at the
:05:33. > :05:37.same time, provide modular and up-to-date job centres that revived
:05:38. > :05:40.the service that is needed. -- provide modular in. I am
:05:41. > :05:44.disappointed that the party opposite are going to be standing against the
:05:45. > :05:52.careful and sensible use of public money, which is exactly what the are
:05:53. > :05:55.delivering. Thank you. In these difficult times, with my honourable
:05:56. > :06:02.friend praised challah job centre that is a huge amount to support and
:06:03. > :06:07.encourage apprenticeships. -- Harlow. Will you make sure the job
:06:08. > :06:10.centres to everything to imply apprenticeships and encourage
:06:11. > :06:16.employers to have apprenticeships themselves. My right honourable
:06:17. > :06:24.friend makes a very good point. He is a great champion for apprentices
:06:25. > :06:29.and apprenticeships. It is the case that we want to encourage that as
:06:30. > :06:36.much as possible and DWP and job centres are indeed doing that across
:06:37. > :06:42.the country. Thank you, Mr Speaker. Compassionate conservatism lasted
:06:43. > :06:47.two days. They should have been an oral statement and a vote on this
:06:48. > :06:50.house on this issue. Does the Secretary of State accept there is a
:06:51. > :06:57.direct link with deprivation and those job centres earmarked for
:06:58. > :07:00.closure? Will he published an impact assessment, on the effects of those
:07:01. > :07:06.with disabilities and caring responsibilities? What engagement
:07:07. > :07:09.has taken place with devolved administrations across the UK? And
:07:10. > :07:12.what will be the effect of the roll out of Universal Credit, given that
:07:13. > :07:21.some of the job centres earmarked for closure have published by his
:07:22. > :07:30.department? Can I just make the point to the honourable gentleman
:07:31. > :07:34.that when a comes to job centres and reforms, it was touched on by the
:07:35. > :07:39.honourable lady in her earlier remarks talking about Glasgow, it
:07:40. > :07:42.will be the case after these reforms have been completed where there will
:07:43. > :07:49.be a reduction in the number of job centres in Glasgow. Glasgow will
:07:50. > :07:54.still have more job centres per head of population than any other city in
:07:55. > :08:03.the United Kingdom. It is also the case that a number of the Glasgow
:08:04. > :08:08.job centres where underutilised. It is therefore sensible that the
:08:09. > :08:13.rationalise this estate and can deliver modern services. In some
:08:14. > :08:18.cases, what we need is much improved job centres with greater facilities
:08:19. > :08:23.and capability of doing more things and that is exactly what the
:08:24. > :08:27.strategy involves. As far as the equality impact assessment, it is
:08:28. > :08:32.the case the Government has always fulfilled its obligations in terms
:08:33. > :08:38.of the assessment that it has made of that. I would again make the
:08:39. > :08:43.point, I hope the SNP are not going to stand against the sensible use of
:08:44. > :08:44.Government estates to deliver public services in the most efficient and
:08:45. > :08:55.cost-effective way. Rationalising the use of Department
:08:56. > :09:01.for Work and Pensions property has to be a good thing and that is also
:09:02. > :09:11.true in city which one sees like mine where there is no chance of it
:09:12. > :09:16.closing but does he agree the issue is making sure we have the right
:09:17. > :09:23.resources for the expanding roll-out of universal crabs which starts next
:09:24. > :09:28.year. That is exactly right and it is important we have job centres
:09:29. > :09:33.that can deal with a new and important role in terms of providing
:09:34. > :09:39.the support claimants need having the work coaches in place, having
:09:40. > :09:43.facilities and in some cases that requires new improved estates and we
:09:44. > :09:48.should not be stuck on the footprint we had a few years ago as there is
:09:49. > :10:01.now their chance to make those changes given the contract is coming
:10:02. > :10:08.to an end. I'd just the office has 130 workers, many of whom can have a
:10:09. > :10:14.career and be up parent because of its proximity to their home and
:10:15. > :10:19.there are no nearby offices to relocate to, so can he paused the
:10:20. > :10:25.closure and publish an impact assessment in what I believe is a
:10:26. > :10:32.special case? In the case of the sites he mentions, there are sites
:10:33. > :10:45.in Chesterfield and Mansfield which are within half an hour by car from
:10:46. > :10:48.there. It is anticipated that at least 75%, probably more, of the
:10:49. > :10:57.staff will be able to be redeployed to other sites and will not be in a
:10:58. > :11:02.position whereby redundancy will be relevant and of course DWP is
:11:03. > :11:10.seeking to ensure that number can be maximised. With this Secretary of
:11:11. > :11:14.State agree with the importance of getting Jobcentre staff to work in
:11:15. > :11:19.places outside job centres like food banks to make sure they are getting
:11:20. > :11:24.the right welfare claims in the right way? There is an important
:11:25. > :11:30.role in terms of outreach with job centre staff can and will perform
:11:31. > :11:37.and it is not the case that all work is done within job centres
:11:38. > :11:41.themselves, staff can provide outreach services in other sites, as
:11:42. > :11:50.they will continue and increasingly do. Sutton is a pilot for universal
:11:51. > :11:54.crabs and I support the principle but I think it is extremely complex
:11:55. > :11:58.and is leaving some people completely unable to plan their
:11:59. > :12:04.expenditure. When Universal Credit is ruled out more widely, how will
:12:05. > :12:09.the Minister make sure those you cannot register claims online or
:12:10. > :12:14.feel they have to go to the job centre because they cannot rely on
:12:15. > :12:21.the post, how can he make sure they are not severely disadvantaged? It
:12:22. > :12:27.is the case that 99% register for Universal Credit online and it is
:12:28. > :12:33.also the case that those who were seeking work are expected to spend
:12:34. > :12:42.up to 35 hours week searching for work and that includes time taken to
:12:43. > :12:47.get to job centres. There are, in particular cases, those who were not
:12:48. > :12:54.able to make it to visit a job centre, in which case other
:12:55. > :12:58.arrangements can be made. This Secretary of State is a work I'm
:12:59. > :13:04.unhappy about the closure of Shipley job centre. I have many questions
:13:05. > :13:10.for him so perhaps my right honourable friend will meet with me,
:13:11. > :13:15.but could he confirm that some of the outreach work will continue to
:13:16. > :13:18.be delivered within the Shipley constituency, and can he also
:13:19. > :13:23.guarantee that the staff can choose which other offers to work out which
:13:24. > :13:30.may be closer to their home and so not all have to move to Bradford? In
:13:31. > :13:37.terms of outreach work continuing, I have been given that as Terence, in
:13:38. > :13:41.terms of staff, more generally, the WP will look to work with staff as
:13:42. > :13:47.much as possible to accommodate their preferences. I know he has
:13:48. > :13:52.already met the Minister for employment to discuss this matter
:13:53. > :13:57.but he and I will have further conversations on this point in the
:13:58. > :14:04.near future, knowing previous experience we will probably have
:14:05. > :14:09.many such conversations. This Government seems obsessed with the
:14:10. > :14:13.spreadsheet economy, to the detriment of communities who must
:14:14. > :14:19.suffer the consequences of austerity, but our National Assembly
:14:20. > :14:25.does not have control of your own services and so are vulnerable to
:14:26. > :14:28.the closure of job centres. I urge this Secretary of State to reverse
:14:29. > :14:35.these plan closures and I ask whether he would consider devolving
:14:36. > :14:39.Jobcentre Plus functions to Wales. In terms of the employment record in
:14:40. > :14:44.the last seven years, we have nearly 3 million people in work, youth
:14:45. > :14:51.unemployment has fallen, the employment rate is high and
:14:52. > :14:55.unemployment is at the lowest level since 1975, and some of the credit
:14:56. > :15:02.has to go to the fact that in terms of what job centres are delivering
:15:03. > :15:06.and in terms of our policies, have assisted on that, so if he is right
:15:07. > :15:13.we continue to seek good value for money for the taxpayer and I don't
:15:14. > :15:21.see any further move towards further devolution in this area. Could this
:15:22. > :15:26.Secretary of State tell me what arrangements are being made to help
:15:27. > :15:30.vulnerable claimants access job centres, thinking particularly of
:15:31. > :15:40.rural areas so with help for trouble for example? My honourable friend
:15:41. > :15:47.raises an important point and there are steps which we take to assist in
:15:48. > :15:54.terms of more vulnerable claimants, in terms of being able to do visits
:15:55. > :16:00.were necessary, in particular circumstances, so that will continue
:16:01. > :16:07.but I think for those who can visit a job centre, it is right that we
:16:08. > :16:12.require them to do so. Is the Minister are worthy when we embarked
:16:13. > :16:21.upon the closure of finding jobs when the pets shot in Derbyshire, we
:16:22. > :16:29.set out the mark unveil straight off the M1 and created several hundred
:16:30. > :16:32.jobs in the process. That has not yet finished with the local
:16:33. > :16:39.authorities concerned. The Bolsover job centre played a significant part
:16:40. > :16:45.in ensuring those 700 jobs were available and as a result they need
:16:46. > :16:52.to continue. We are enlarging the site to provide several hundred more
:16:53. > :16:57.jobs. Surely it's not appropriate to be shutting the Bolsover job centre
:16:58. > :17:03.that has played whenever some part in providing work for those miners
:17:04. > :17:10.and their families who had lost their jobs, surely he should reverse
:17:11. > :17:14.this. First can I express my thanks to the honourable member for his
:17:15. > :17:24.recognition of the work that has been done to help those who had been
:17:25. > :17:30.working, working miners, and I think I am confident in saying that
:17:31. > :17:35.unemployment numbers have moved in the right direction in his
:17:36. > :17:40.constituency in the last seven years, which may reflect the
:17:41. > :17:44.changing political nature of his constituency, but in terms of the
:17:45. > :17:54.Bolsover side, staff are moving to Staveley. It is the case that job
:17:55. > :17:59.centres have a valuable role to play but it is right that we have those
:18:00. > :18:08.modern facilities and that is what these plans involve delivering. I
:18:09. > :18:14.would just like to say to my right honourable friend that we are having
:18:15. > :18:17.this debate in the context of record employment and this is something we
:18:18. > :18:23.should be welcome in on both sides of the House, the fact there were
:18:24. > :18:30.fewer people unemployed than ever before and that has brought enormous
:18:31. > :18:36.social benefits... If the honourable lady has a moment's patients, she
:18:37. > :18:44.will see the question, the claimant count... Order. The honourable
:18:45. > :18:48.gentleman does need to put a question, not in a moment but
:18:49. > :18:52.straightaway because a lot of colleagues are waiting to
:18:53. > :18:59.contribute. The honourable gentleman is new and must get used to it but I
:19:00. > :19:03.want him to get to his question. The important thing is that we ensure
:19:04. > :19:08.people have the support we need rather than be obsessed with bricks
:19:09. > :19:15.and mortar. I agree that is the right point and the support people
:19:16. > :19:22.need can often be better provided in well-equipped, modern, sometimes
:19:23. > :19:29.larger job centres then using the estate that may have served us well
:19:30. > :19:33.15 years ago but is now out of date. Sheffield's eastern Avenue job
:19:34. > :19:39.centre is rooted in the community it serves. Its staff there understand
:19:40. > :19:44.local people and can support them because of that. This Secretary of
:19:45. > :19:48.State talks about an improved service that does seem not recognise
:19:49. > :19:53.that centralising the service, breaking the link, will damage the
:19:54. > :20:00.work the job centre can do and will he think again? I would say in his
:20:01. > :20:05.point about the Sheffield centre, let me reassure him that outreach
:20:06. > :20:10.will be put in place in the local community so there will continue to
:20:11. > :20:14.be a service in his career but the number of job centres in Charfield
:20:15. > :20:23.is being reduced from seven to six, but I think in that context of that
:20:24. > :20:27.city I think that is the right move so we have sex properly functioning,
:20:28. > :20:37.Philippe utilised centres rather than more. Can I say to my right
:20:38. > :20:40.honourable friend that when the Labour government closed the
:20:41. > :20:46.Christchurch job centre, this guy did not fall in, but can I ask
:20:47. > :20:51.whether it wouldn't be sensible with fewer job centres to make sure they
:20:52. > :20:57.are open at weekends so are more accessible to people? My honourable
:20:58. > :21:03.friend makes a good point. Other governments have also changed the
:21:04. > :21:11.estate system for job centres and I don't think that was by any means a
:21:12. > :21:16.disastrous move. In terms of his point about opening at weekends, he
:21:17. > :21:22.raises an interesting point and we would have the facility to do that
:21:23. > :21:26.and that is something we would want to keep under review, considering
:21:27. > :21:36.value for money, but if there was a good case for it, that is something
:21:37. > :21:41.we could do. Having conducted a survey outside Batley job centre, I
:21:42. > :21:46.know the majority of users walk there are often every day to use the
:21:47. > :21:52.computers to look for jobs. With it close and they will have to walk to
:21:53. > :21:57.Dewsbury, a journey of 20 minutes if you're able-bodied, so can the
:21:58. > :22:01.Secretary of State confirm whether new sanctioning guidance will be
:22:02. > :22:09.provided those who were late miss appointments? We don't expect people
:22:10. > :22:13.to miss appointments. It is the case that people who were looking for
:22:14. > :22:19.jobs are expected to spend 35 are is weak looking for jobs, which should
:22:20. > :22:25.enable them to travel from Batley to Dewsbury in the time available. We
:22:26. > :22:28.would expect people to make appointments but we would look at
:22:29. > :22:38.the circumstances if somebody has missed an appointment, to take into
:22:39. > :22:42.account any mitigating factors. Has my right honourable friend made any
:22:43. > :22:46.assessment of the direct benefit of job-seekers will experience as a
:22:47. > :22:56.result of co-locating job centre services with other support because
:22:57. > :22:58.outcomes matter here? It is outcomes that matter, there may be
:22:59. > :23:07.circumstances where a co-location has benefit or where having a job
:23:08. > :23:14.centre that is modern and properly designed, is of sufficient scale to
:23:15. > :23:18.provide a range of services to be claimant, all those benefit in
:23:19. > :23:28.helping improve outcomes and it is improving outcomes that we want to
:23:29. > :23:32.do. Further to the answer he gave recently, evidence in the PCS union
:23:33. > :23:37.suggested job centre closures were likely to lead to increased numbers
:23:38. > :23:42.of people being late for appointments and sanction, and the
:23:43. > :23:43.director of the poverty Alliance argued that the Government should
:23:44. > :23:53.reconsider sanctions for lateness. Let's put this in context, 97% of
:23:54. > :23:59.claimants do not get sanctioned every month. I do not think this, as
:24:00. > :24:05.I say, in the context of number of hours we expect people to be looking
:24:06. > :24:13.for work, then I think travelling to a job centre, just in the way that
:24:14. > :24:18.people travel to work, is the way life operates for most people. If
:24:19. > :24:24.there are particular circumstances that result in somebody being late
:24:25. > :24:31.for an assessment or meeting, then that is something that can be taken
:24:32. > :24:37.into account. Does the Minister not realise that job centres are always
:24:38. > :24:44.needed under a Labour Government? Under this Government, with
:24:45. > :24:48.unemployment fives falling, does he agree we should be spending money
:24:49. > :24:52.getting more people into work and not spending it on empty office
:24:53. > :25:00.space? My honourable friend makes a very good point. One could be drawn
:25:01. > :25:04.into a comparison between governments of different sort in
:25:05. > :25:08.terms of records in employment. I am very proud of this Government's
:25:09. > :25:14.record. We have an important role in providing support to people in
:25:15. > :25:18.getting into work and staying in work and improving their working
:25:19. > :25:23.position. I would rather spend the resources we have in doing that as
:25:24. > :25:29.efficiently and effectively as possible and wasting ?140 million
:25:30. > :25:37.per year on an estate that is no longer fit for purpose would not be
:25:38. > :25:48.doing that. I appreciate that the leader is making savings. Including
:25:49. > :25:52.the one in my constituency. It is passing on a huge cost to those who
:25:53. > :25:57.are now going to have to find come out of their benefits, the bus costs
:25:58. > :26:03.of travelling to the new job centre. According to the Minister, it takes
:26:04. > :26:06.39 minutes to get from these places. Clearly, he's never tried to do
:26:07. > :26:11.their journey on a bus. Will he undertake that nobody travelling is
:26:12. > :26:19.sanctioned because of a bus service that is not regular? The first point
:26:20. > :26:24.to make in terms of costs of travel, for those who have been out of work
:26:25. > :26:33.for 13 weeks or more commonly have access to the job centre discount
:26:34. > :26:40.card. That reduces the cost by half. In terms of travelling, there are a
:26:41. > :26:46.lot of people in their daily lives and have to travel distances and
:26:47. > :26:49.have to be at a place on time. Again, when we have got people
:26:50. > :26:53.searching for work, we expect them to spend 35 hours per week looking
:26:54. > :26:59.for that work and that can include allowing good time to travel from
:27:00. > :27:02.home to a job centre. I think that is perfectly reasonable. Again, if
:27:03. > :27:05.there are particular circumstances that result in someone missing an
:27:06. > :27:12.appointment, then there is discretion as far as sanctions are
:27:13. > :27:16.concerned. Does my right honourable friend agree that it is the purpose
:27:17. > :27:23.of the state is reviewed to make sure that the state is effective and
:27:24. > :27:28.reflects demand on service? Not my words but the words of the SNP
:27:29. > :27:36.Government Cabinet Secretary for Justice. On the matter of Police
:27:37. > :27:43.Scotland, showing we argue for rationalising the public services of
:27:44. > :27:53.state when it suits them. Well, my honourable friend makes an excellent
:27:54. > :27:59.point. When governments have to ensure the public money is spent in
:28:00. > :28:05.a sensible way, one of the ways that money can be spent sensibly is by
:28:06. > :28:09.rationalising the estate. Keeping open under utilised job centres is
:28:10. > :28:18.simply not a good use of taxpayers money and it does not do claimants
:28:19. > :28:22.any good either. Thank you, Mr Speaker. The Scottish affairs select
:28:23. > :28:26.committee published a report at the end of the last parliament critical
:28:27. > :28:30.of the Government's approach at the closures. Particularly in Glasgow
:28:31. > :28:34.with some claimants having to take three buses at huge expense to other
:28:35. > :28:38.job centres. He has said three times already in the Chamber this morning
:28:39. > :28:41.that he will not review the sanction regime for people who are late for
:28:42. > :28:46.appointments. Will you look at that with the compassion that I know he
:28:47. > :28:50.has as a good minister from the previous parliament to see whether
:28:51. > :28:53.or not anything can be done to make sure people are not sanctioned and
:28:54. > :28:58.put into significant deprivation as a result. I make the point to the
:28:59. > :29:04.honourable member that there are many more appointments for which
:29:05. > :29:10.claimants are late than sanctions. It is simply not the case that being
:29:11. > :29:15.late automatically means a sanction. A judgment is made here but I think
:29:16. > :29:19.we also have to recognise that a lot of people in work have to catch
:29:20. > :29:23.three buses to get to work and are expected to be there on time. I do
:29:24. > :29:27.not think that is an unreasonable position to say that people do have
:29:28. > :29:33.to travel to get to a job centre. If they are able to do so, then that is
:29:34. > :29:37.reasonable requirement. Glasgow continues to be the most generously
:29:38. > :29:48.provided in terms of numbers of job centres of any city in the United
:29:49. > :29:52.Kingdom. The excessive noise from the SNP benches. We are very
:29:53. > :30:01.excitable state. I am not sure what they had for breakfast. I think I
:30:02. > :30:11.would avoid it. We are always grateful to you for your
:30:12. > :30:14.observations. Thank you, Mr Speaker. In Aberdeen, Greyfriars house will
:30:15. > :30:18.close and staff will move to the front facing job centre at Ebony
:30:19. > :30:21.house. Can he give you assurance to my constituents are level and
:30:22. > :30:25.quality of service they receive will not diminish with this decision and
:30:26. > :30:31.what improvements can expect is the in the delivery of service? The
:30:32. > :30:35.reality is, the services will be improving. I am a strong believer
:30:36. > :30:39.that Universal Credit, in particular, can result in an
:30:40. > :30:42.improved welfare system and the increase in the number of work
:30:43. > :30:50.cultures that we have. Scotland is no exception to the fact that every
:30:51. > :30:54.region and nation in the United Kingdom will be seeing an increase
:30:55. > :31:01.in the number of front line staff. And also providing service. I myself
:31:02. > :31:08.have visited a job centre to see the sort of work that is now happening
:31:09. > :31:12.and I am in courage to Ivy improved services -- encouraged by the
:31:13. > :31:16.improved services and the wait staff are working with claimants to help
:31:17. > :31:21.them get jobs and improve their circumstances. No one can accuse the
:31:22. > :31:25.Secretary of State of excluding from his and there is any matter which
:31:26. > :31:31.might be judged by him to be in any way, at any time, material.
:31:32. > :31:39.Comprehensive. That would be a polite way of describing it. Norwich
:31:40. > :31:42.Green job centre serves some of the most deprived neighbourhoods of
:31:43. > :31:45.Liverpool. Can I ask him if he will meet with my right honourable
:31:46. > :31:49.friend, the member of Liverpool Walton and myself to discuss the
:31:50. > :31:58.plans to close it and explore janitors, including core location?
:31:59. > :32:03.-- explore alternatives. It is the case that Liverpool has the third
:32:04. > :32:07.highest of job centres in larger cities. I note that my right
:32:08. > :32:10.honourable friend, the Minister for employment, would be happy to meet
:32:11. > :32:19.the honourable member to discuss this further. Thank you, Mr Speaker.
:32:20. > :32:24.There has been a 70% reduction in those being unemployed in my
:32:25. > :32:27.constituency since 2010. One of the best ways to reach vulnerable
:32:28. > :32:32.claimants who have not managed to get into work is out reach at local
:32:33. > :32:36.colleges where perhaps educational support could be tailored at the
:32:37. > :32:42.same time. Can he confirm that innovation is at the heart of these
:32:43. > :32:47.changes? I think my right honourable friend makes a very good point and
:32:48. > :32:51.certainly job centres are very open to partnership working. I think she
:32:52. > :32:55.highlights an area where there is more progress. We might be able to
:32:56. > :33:03.make but I think she raises an important point. The DWP are
:33:04. > :33:07.proposing to relocate the service centre out of Newport to some
:33:08. > :33:12.location north of Cardiff. Location and clear. Along with my honourable
:33:13. > :33:16.friend, we want to keep these jobs, the expertise and the services and
:33:17. > :33:20.those 249 jobs in the heart of our city. Can I as the Minister to meet
:33:21. > :33:27.with us through to be the case in person? -- Astley Minister. We are
:33:28. > :33:29.trying to find a site that will minimise job losses. I know the
:33:30. > :33:38.Minister for employment would be happy to meet her. My constituents
:33:39. > :33:46.in Broxburn are facing the closure of the DWP office. The phased the
:33:47. > :33:50.further closure years ago. Like other members, the very reliant on
:33:51. > :33:53.the service and the Google map approach by this Government does not
:33:54. > :33:59.reflect the true travel they will have to undertake. Will he undertake
:34:00. > :34:03.to do a full review to the areas that are reliant on vital services
:34:04. > :34:08.that those services provide -- centres provide? When it came to the
:34:09. > :34:15.consultation, we looked at a variety of measures by in terms of travel
:34:16. > :34:24.distance and consultation with staff as well. I do not accept criticism
:34:25. > :34:28.of the approach that was taken. Does the Secretary of State accept that
:34:29. > :34:33.requiring some sick and disabled people to travel further to attend
:34:34. > :34:39.compulsory interviews is likely to lead to more cost and hardship and
:34:40. > :34:42.worry for our constituents who are looking for jobs. What will he do to
:34:43. > :34:49.make sure his plans to not leave these honourable people hit the
:34:50. > :34:55.hardest? -- vulnerable people. Let me be clear, we do not expect
:34:56. > :35:00.claimants to regularly attend job centres. We are not looking to
:35:01. > :35:08.reduce the number of health assessment centres and this is very
:35:09. > :35:12.much focused on job-seekers here at ensuring that we rationalise the
:35:13. > :35:20.estate and use our resources as effectively and efficiently as
:35:21. > :35:26.possible. The closure of local services will have an negative
:35:27. > :35:30.impact on the local economy. It will also impact on the quality of life
:35:31. > :35:35.of employees with caring responsibilities will have to travel
:35:36. > :35:39.longer distances. Can I add him what consultation and impact assessment
:35:40. > :35:43.had been carried out with staff, customers and trade unions and will
:35:44. > :35:47.whose department change direction if the consultation does not support
:35:48. > :35:52.the closures that have been planned? There has been comprehensive
:35:53. > :36:00.consultation, as I set out earlier. It was announced in January and
:36:01. > :36:06.there will be further consultations to decipher whether other
:36:07. > :36:11.redundancies are necessary. These are not reforms, these are cuts. By
:36:12. > :36:15.closing Bridgeton job centre, this is a cut to the support of the
:36:16. > :36:20.people who need it most. We are already getting hurt by this
:36:21. > :36:25.Government at being sanctioned. I see these things at my surgeries.
:36:26. > :36:29.With the Government guarantee or this Minister guarantee, that know
:36:30. > :36:32.one person who is having to travel from Bridgeton job centre to
:36:33. > :36:35.Shettleston job centre will have to be sanctioned after taking two
:36:36. > :36:41.buses, money out their incomes and being viewed as late because of
:36:42. > :36:45.that? What we expect of people is to make reasonable efforts to get to
:36:46. > :36:48.the job centres which are relevant to them. The people make reasonable
:36:49. > :36:56.efforts, they will not be sanctioned. The job centre at
:36:57. > :37:00.Deptford was closed in November 2010, now the job centre in Lewisham
:37:01. > :37:06.will close. Young people will now need to travel to Peckham for
:37:07. > :37:11.support finding employment. With youth violence on the rise, how
:37:12. > :37:19.would the Government ensure our young people travelling to Peckham I
:37:20. > :37:25.kept safe? As I say, people who work in her constituency also travel to
:37:26. > :37:31.get to work. The fact is, we have to have a sensible and properly
:37:32. > :37:42.utilised job centre estate across the country, and that includes in
:37:43. > :37:48.London. Over 300 jobs will move from the site in Paisley to Glasgow.
:37:49. > :37:54.Following hundreds of job losses and transfers, this is the very last
:37:55. > :37:56.thing the economy needs. Can the Secretary of State in Germany they
:37:57. > :38:06.will be zero redundancies as a result of this move? -- can the
:38:07. > :38:12.Secretary of State ensure me's as I made clear, the number of front line
:38:13. > :38:15.staff in job centres in every nation and region of this country will be
:38:16. > :38:25.increasing over the course of this process, not reducing. Thank you, Mr
:38:26. > :38:29.Speaker, knowing me as you do, I have no reason to be journalists on
:38:30. > :38:33.this matter. I will say that I am grateful to see that Castlemilk job
:38:34. > :38:38.centre has been removed from his proposed closure plan but I have to
:38:39. > :38:42.say, there is more than a hint of disappointment that Langside job
:38:43. > :38:47.centre remains on the list. It serves the second most densely
:38:48. > :38:53.populated council population in Scotland. There is a clear need for
:38:54. > :38:54.it to be there. Is there an actual equality impact assessment and will
:38:55. > :39:07.republish it? Can I express my gratitude for the
:39:08. > :39:14.absence of churlishness from the honourable gentleman? He sets an
:39:15. > :39:19.example to us all. In terms of the equalities and impact assessment,
:39:20. > :39:28.the Government has fulfilled its statutory duties as it always does.
:39:29. > :39:33.The original inquiry for the job centres clearly didn't respond to
:39:34. > :39:39.our council's offer of shared premises, if it was just about
:39:40. > :39:44.assets, but this now create a situation with the closure of the
:39:45. > :39:50.Alexandria job centre, where job centres plus staff and DWP staff
:39:51. > :39:58.feel they are under threat. What assurances can the Secretary of
:39:59. > :40:05.State gave to my constituents in Dumbarton that they will not be
:40:06. > :40:08.moved from my constituency? On co-location, we are happy to work
:40:09. > :40:18.with other authorities. When it comes to signing on, it has to be at
:40:19. > :40:24.job centre premises. In terms of guarantees and so on, any department
:40:25. > :40:30.has to sensibly look at its estate and ensure it is deployed
:40:31. > :40:39.efficiently and we are increasing front line staff, not reducing them.
:40:40. > :40:43.Given the Joseph Rowntree foundation in their disconnected communities
:40:44. > :40:48.report used Glasgow as a study centre and suggested strongly that a
:40:49. > :40:57.well distributed employment support network is vital canvas Secretary
:40:58. > :41:02.state tell me how this is being objectively, evidential debased, the
:41:03. > :41:07.cuts now being applied to Glasgow? It will still be the case of the
:41:08. > :41:11.large cities in the UK per head of population, last autumn will have
:41:12. > :41:20.more job centres than any other city. I have porridge for my
:41:21. > :41:26.breakfast with a bit of salt in it, but he said people will not be
:41:27. > :41:31.sanctioned if they make reasonable efforts but who will judge a
:41:32. > :41:36.reasonable effort? My constituents face a six mile round trip with all
:41:37. > :41:42.the attentional of bus routes and Brown journeys, and what does that
:41:43. > :41:47.mean for the remaining job centres in Glasgow? Will he meet with the
:41:48. > :41:54.Scottish Government counterparts before any further decisions? We
:41:55. > :41:59.have settled the estate and do not have immediate plans to revisit
:42:00. > :42:04.that. In terms of the sanctions process, there is a comprehensive
:42:05. > :42:09.system of appeals available and there are far more appointments
:42:10. > :42:15.missed than there are sanctions but I expect that to continue to be the
:42:16. > :42:21.case. Yesterday's statement about the closure of Easterhouse job
:42:22. > :42:28.centre is another body blow to the East End. The Secretary of State and
:42:29. > :42:33.ministers have never bothered to visit job centres in Glasgow, so
:42:34. > :42:37.will the Secretary of State come to Glasgow, do the bus journeys to
:42:38. > :42:45.Shettleston and see how idiotic these plans are? I think you might
:42:46. > :42:54.want to have a word with his honourable friend on the subject of
:42:55. > :42:58.churlishness. Glasgow, as I keep saying, has more job centres per
:42:59. > :43:07.head of population than any large city in the whole of the UK. That
:43:08. > :43:14.will continue to be the case and I have to say, if the Scottish
:43:15. > :43:21.Government took the approach of SNP members in this House in terms of
:43:22. > :43:31.good use of taxpayers money, then they would be in even bigger trouble
:43:32. > :43:33.than they appear to be. Order. Point of order, Mr Tom Brake. It may not