Contributions
233 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDUniversal Credit: Access to Legal AidThe Ministry of Justice is responsible for access to legal aid, and we will continue to work closely with it as it reviews the means test for entitlement. However, that is not the…01 Jul 2019HANSARDTopical QuestionsWe have made substantial responses to Philip Alston’s report. We have acknowledged some of his suggestions, and we will look at changing our assessments on poverty by using the…01 Jul 2019HANSARDTopical QuestionsI can confirm that, and it is refreshing to be able to point out that universal credit is, compared with the legacy benefits, a more generous, more effective and better-targeted…01 Jul 2019HANSARDTopical QuestionsThe hon. Lady may be aware that I have some concerns about no deal; I would much prefer that this country chooses to leave the European Union on the basis of a deal, and I am…01 Jul 2019HANSARDWork and PensionsThe hon. Lady raises a good point. We are considering how best to respond, ensuring that we put the interests of the clients first. I also point out that we are spending £2…18 Jun 2019HANSARDWork and PensionsThe hon. Lady raises a good point. We are considering how best to respond, ensuring that we put the interests of the clients first. I also point out that we are spending over £5…18 Jun 2019HANSARD Inequality and Social MobilityI will make a little more progress and then take some more interventions. I was referring to the information from the IFS that the hon. Member for Wirral West cited. It went on to…12 Jun 2019HANSARD Inequality and Social MobilityCharacteristically, the hon. Gentleman raises an important point. We know that different headwinds are at play here, and we know that social media is, in some respects, having a…12 Jun 2019HANSARD Inequality and Social MobilityI certainly agree with the hon. Lady that we need to do more to provide more housing for people on low incomes, and this Government are committed to ensuring that we do build more…12 Jun 2019HANSARD Inequality and Social MobilityWe always have conversations across the Government. I work very closely with my colleagues across the Government to ensure that we devise the best policies to help everybody on…12 Jun 2019HANSARD Inequality and Social MobilityMr Alston, of course, spent two days in Scotland, to follow up on the point made by my hon. Friend the Member for Chelmsford (Vicky Ford). I refer the hon. Member for Airdrie and…12 Jun 2019HANSARD Inequality and Social MobilityThe hon. Gentleman paints a very bleak picture, but the facts that came out on Tuesday demonstrated that monthly incomes are rising faster than inflation. There are jobs being…12 Jun 2019HANSARD Inequality and Social MobilityThe tax cuts by this Government that I am most proud of are those that have taken the lowest paid out of tax altogether. Thirty million people have received a tax cut under this…12 Jun 2019HANSARD Inequality and Social MobilityI want to make some more progress. We continue to look for ways to help people out of poverty, which is why we have acted to increase the incomes of the poorest in society. My…12 Jun 2019HANSARD Inequality and Social MobilityI am grateful to the Opposition for giving me the opportunity, on behalf of the Government, to talk about our commitment to reducing inequality and to improving social mobility. I…12 Jun 2019HANSARD Inequality and Social MobilityI am going to make some more progress. Let me set out how this Government are supporting social mobility and helping people to improve their lot. We know that social mobility…12 Jun 2019HANSARD Inequality and Social MobilityThe hon. Lady must bear in mind the context in which some of those welfare reforms were made. The Government came to office in 2010, in the midst of an economic crisis. Reforms…12 Jun 2019HANSARD Inequality and Social MobilityMy hon. Friend is absolutely right. When people express concerns about universal credit, as they do sometimes, I often remind them of what it replaced: six different systems, two…12 Jun 2019HANSARD Inequality and Social MobilityI gently remind the hon. Gentleman that we came in in 2010 to an economic crisis, and the fact that we have seen an increase in people’s wages over inflation in every month for…12 Jun 2019HANSARD Inequality and Social MobilityIf Members will forgive me, I shall make some progress, and then I will take some more interventions. Let me talk for a moment about the Government’s record. The hon. Member for…12 Jun 2019