Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Topical Questions

Monday 19 June 2023 · 17 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 9 Partly answered 7 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Ministerial focus includes reducing economic inactivity and fraud in the benefits system.
  • A universal basic income is not being considered by the Government as a viable option.
  • The Secretary of State will address concerns regarding nursery charging models to support childcare.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Gareth Bacon Con Orpington
Economy Benefits & Welfare
Context

The question follows the Secretary of State's appointment to his current role.

Question

If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities. When I was appointed, I mentioned focusing on economic inactivity and fraud reduction.

Answer from Mel Stride

One of our key focuses would be economic inactivity, which has fallen by 45% since its peak: down by 140,000 in the last quarter alone. Another focus is bearing down on fraud; it has fallen by some 10% across our benefits system since we published our fraud plan in May last year.

Answered
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Q2 Gareth Bacon Con Orpington
Benefits & Welfare
Context

Recent third-party universal basic income pilots have sparked debate.

Question

Some on the political left have made much noise about recent UBI pilots. Does my right hon. Friend agree that this concept was roundly rejected even during the pandemic and is doomed to fail?

Answer from Mel Stride

A universal basic income is not the way to proceed, and it is certainly not something that the Government are considering. Our approach is to ensure that work always pays, and incentivise work.

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Q3 Jon Ashworth Lab
Employment
Context

The Secretary of State suggested unemployed individuals should work in restaurants or pubs.

Question

Will the Secretary of State be voting to sanction someone who has just taken early retirement at age 59, or is he advising him to work in a pub?

Answer from Mel Stride

I am happy to meet the right hon. Gentleman in any pub that he cares to name, and I am sure we will have a very convivial evening.

Not addressed: The question about voting sanctions for early retirees was not directly addressed

How: Convivial Meeting

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Q4 Jon Ashworth Lab
Benefits & Welfare
Context

Concerns about cuts in disability employment advisers by the DWP.

Question

The working-age disability benefit bill is going to rise to £25 billion—it was £19 billion before the pandemic—but in the last 12 months, the DWP has cut the number of disability employment advisers by 10%. Why is that?

Answer from Mel Stride

The right hon. Gentleman is right that inactivity is increasing among the long-term sick and disabled, while it is reducing in others. We have White Paper plans to ensure we focus on what those who are long-term sick can do at work.

Partly answered

Not addressed: No explanation given for cutting disability employment advisers

How: White Paper Plans

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Q5 Andrea Leadsom Con
Benefits & Welfare Children & Families
Context

Rules changed to make childcare support available up front.

Question

Having helped Ukrainian guests to get childcare support and then into work, I was delighted when my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State changed the rules so that childcare support is available up front. He will be aware that most nurseries require a term's fees in advance, so what more can be done to ensure that sometimes unstable and infrequent work is not further hampered by uncertainty about whether childcare will be available?

Answer from Mims Davies

This Government are focused on making sure that work pays for all parents. My right hon. Friend will be pleased to know that I will take up the specific concern about nursery charging models and ensure that the matter is raised with the Department for Education.

Partly answered

Not addressed: No concrete actions mentioned, only intent to raise concerns

How: Raising Concerns

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Q6 David Linden SNP
Scotland Benefits & Welfare
Context

Former Tory leader William Hague suggested abandoning the triple lock.

Question

Last week, I was in Aberdeen to attend the annual conference of the Scottish Pensioners' Forum and outline why we think an independent Scotland would be the best place to grow old. In contrast, at the weekend, the former Tory leader William Hague wrote in the papers that his party should abandon the triple lock. Is that why pensioners are now supporting independence more than ever?

Answer from Laura Trott

I do not think they are. Also, the triple lock is very proudly a Conservative policy.

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Q7 Nigel Mills Con
Economy Taxation Housing
Context

Interest rates looking to hit around 6%.

Question

With interest rates looking to hit around 6%, are the Government considering making the support for the mortgage interest scheme a little more generous, perhaps by raising the cap or the interest rate, so that it provides the safety net that people expect?

Answer from Mel Stride

As my hon. Friend will be aware, the Treasury has made it clear that there will not be a significant fiscal intervention around mortgages.

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Q8 Steve McCabe Lab
Benefits & Welfare
Context

Charity Scope reports that a disabled household is £900 a month poorer than a non-disabled household.

Question

The charity Scope reports that a disabled household is £900 a month poorer than a non-disabled household, because of essentials such as specialist medical equipment, aids, adaptations, diet and heating. Does that not make the one-off £150 payment look pretty miserly?

Answer from Tom Pursglove

The hon. Gentleman is right to raise the challenges that disabled people face with the cost of living, but it is important to recognise that many disabled people receive various aspects of the wider package of support.

Partly answered

Not addressed: One-off £150 payment not addressed specifically

How: Wider Package Of Support

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Q9 Stephen Morgan Lab Portsmouth South
Benefits & Welfare
Context

200,000 people of pension age pushed into poverty last year.

Question

Pensioner poverty is on the rise, with an additional 200,000 people of pension age being pushed into poverty last year. What hope can the Minister give pensioners in Portsmouth that they will not have to choose between heating their home and eating this winter?

Answer from Laura Trott

I am sure the hon. Gentleman will note that pensioner poverty has gone down by 200,000 in absolute terms since 2010.

Answered
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Q10 Luke Pollard Labour (Co-op) Plymouth Sutton and Devonport
Benefits & Welfare Children & Families
Context

Pollard mentioned a February meeting with the Secretary of State regarding introducing a deposit guarantor scheme for young people leaving care.

Question

In February this year, I took care leavers from Plymouth to see the Secretary of State about introducing a deposit guarantor scheme. Will the Secretary of State give an update on how the DWP is progressing with that proposal put forward by me and Barnardo's?

Answer from Mel Stride

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman; I opened my door to him as soon as he requested and had him and his colleagues in for a discussion. We continue to consider those matters as part of the general policy going forward, and I will keep him informed of news as it may or may not occur.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific progress details on the deposit guarantor scheme were not provided.

How: Under Review

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Q11 Desmond Swayne Con New Forest West
Benefits & Welfare
Context

Swayne inquired about the relationship between a disability action plan and the national disability strategy.

Question

Is the disability action plan in addition to the national disability strategy?

Answer from Tom Pursglove

The plan is in addition to the national disability strategy. We as a Government disagree with the position that the Court has taken regarding consultation. We have been given permission to appeal, and we are appealing. The disability action plan is about short-term measures that we can get on and deliver.

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Q12 Mary Foy Lab City of Durham
Benefits & Welfare Children & Families
Context

Foy highlighted an increase in food bank usage by over 60% in a year.

Question

The number of people fed by food banks, using food vouchers, has increased by over 60% in a year. Can the Secretary of State honestly say he is doing a good job of tackling food poverty in County Durham?

Answer from Mims Davies

I congratulate the hon. Lady on the new addition. New statistics on food bank usage will help the Government to understand the characteristics of the people most in need, and we will continue to work across Government to support the most vulnerable. I was very interested to read the recent “Child of the North” report, which we are taking very seriously.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific measures or commitment regarding food poverty were not detailed.

How: Under Consideration

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Q13 Drew Hendry SNP
Economy Benefits & Welfare
Context

Hendry mentioned that food costs have risen nearly 30% in the past year, referencing research by Which?.

Question

The cost of the most common family foods has risen by nearly 30% in the past year alone. What discussions has the Secretary of State had with Cabinet colleagues about how to learn from our European neighbours and reduce the crisis in people's homes now?

Answer from Mel Stride

What we are learning from our European neighbours is that this is a common problem. In fact, food price inflation in Germany, Portugal and other countries is higher than it is here. Rather than intervening in markets, as some are spuriously suggesting, and taking us back to the prices and incomes policies of the 1970s, we have entered discussions with the supermarkets, some of which have recently suggested that they will be able to lower prices, or lower the rate of increase in some prices, on the more essential items.

Answered
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Q14 Angela Eagle Lab Wallasey
Economy Benefits & Welfare
Context

Eagle noted that basic foodstuff inflation is rising much faster than overall inflation.

Question

Food inflation is rising by double the rate of inflation, and the rate for basic foodstuffs—bread, pasta, milk—is even higher, often going up by 40% or more. In my constituency, 38% of people have skipped meals. Will the Secretary of State investigate the role of sanctions and benefit inadequacy in a system in which people cannot feed themselves?

Answer from Mel Stride

I thank the hon. Lady for her question. I have fond memories of serving with her on the Treasury Committee. We always keep sanctions under review, but I am currently satisfied that they are broadly operating in an effective and proportionate manner. The hon. Lady mentions inflation on essential foods, and I point her to the cost of living payments, which are very significant, equivalent to £3,000 per family over the two-year period in which they will apply. The energy price guarantee has been extended until June, and there is a rise in the national living wage.

Partly answered

Not addressed: No commitment on investigating sanctions and benefits adequacy was made.

How: Under Review

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Q15 Patrick Grady SNP
Benefits & Welfare Standards & Ethics
Context

Grady pointed out an insensitive message on the DWP website regarding a bereaved individual.

Question

A person trying to update their universal credit claim following the death of their wife received a page stating, “You stopped caring for”—then the name of the wife—“from the date on which she died. This was due to the person dying.” Will the Minister look at this specific case and at the issue more generally if I send him more information?

Answer from Mel Stride

I wholeheartedly agree with the hon. Gentleman on the importance of sensitive language, particularly for the most vulnerable and particularly in the circumstances he describes of someone who is recently bereaved. I will most definitely take away the specific issue he raises and look at it extremely carefully.

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Q16 Richard Foord Lib Dem Honiton and Sidmouth
Children & Families
Context

Foord mentioned a case where the Child Maintenance Service was considering writing off £47,000 of arrears.

Question

The Child Maintenance Service recently wrote to my constituent Deborah to confirm that the father of her children is in arrears by £47,000. Can the Secretary of State explain why parents can be left with so little by the CMS when it gives up on collecting debts for parents who work so hard?

Answer from Mims Davies

The Government are supporting the private Member's Bill that aims to streamline CMS enforcement processes. The CMS will not hesitate to use robust enforcement measures where someone is consistently refusing to meet their obligation towards their children. I am happy to look at that case and ask my colleague in the Lords to look at it.

Answered
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Q17 Cat Smith Lab Lancaster and Wyre
Employment
Context

Smith inquired about statutory sick pay levels compared to European countries.

Question

Why is statutory sick pay in this country so much lower than European comparators?

Answer from Tom Pursglove

I would be happy to meet the hon. Lady to discuss the issue of statutory sick pay, and, of course, we always keep these matters under review.

Partly answered

Not addressed: No specific reasons were provided for the low levels of statutory sick pay.

How: Under Consideration

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