Contributions
1,152 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDJobs MarketMy Lords, the Government are making a significant investment in young people. I assume the noble Lord is referring to employer national insurance.13 Oct 2025HANSARDJobs MarketMy Lords, within hospitality, there are still 78,000 vacancies in accommodation and food service activities. That is unchanged on the quarter and is only 7,000 below the…13 Oct 2025HANSARDJobs MarketMy Lords, given the levels of inactivity due to health over which the noble Viscount’s Government presided, that is a brave question, but let me answer it none the less. This…13 Oct 2025HANSARDJobs MarketMy Lords, I thank my noble friend for an excellent question. I assume that she refers to the Government’s recent announcement that we are moving away from a target for university…13 Oct 2025HANSARDJobs MarketMy Lords, I am very fond of our traditions in the House of Lords, but we now have a new one: on a monthly basis, we relitigate the Employment Rights Bill in the form of an Oral…13 Oct 2025HANSARDJobs MarketMy Lords, economic growth remains this Government’s No. 1 mission and boosting labour market participation is central to achieving this. The UK jobs market continues to show…13 Oct 2025HANSARDYouth UnemploymentMy Lords, too many young people are at risk of being left behind, without the right skills, opportunities and support to get started in work. This Government are determined to…11 Sept 2025HANSARDYouth UnemploymentMy Lords, the noble Baroness commented on vacancies. She is very aware, as I am, of the facts of the economy and will know that vacancies have been declining steadily since spring…11 Sept 2025HANSARDYouth UnemploymentI have just talked about what happens with young people who are hidden NEETs, as he describes. Let me turn to those who are NEET who we do know about—for example, those on…11 Sept 2025HANSARDYouth UnemploymentThe right reverend Prelate raises a really interesting point, and I am very glad to hear that he is talking to young people individually. I would always be interested to hear more…11 Sept 2025HANSARDYouth UnemploymentI thank my noble friend and pay tribute to him. He was a reforming Minister in the last Labour Government and did lots of work in this area. I am conscious that I learned a lot…11 Sept 2025HANSARDYouth UnemploymentMy Lords, the noble Lord is right to flag that youth unemployment has been rising over the last three years. It is probably worth noting that there is always a higher rate of…11 Sept 2025HANSARDSickness Benefits: In-person InterviewsThe noble Baroness asks an interesting question. I do not know whether it was on her watch but she may remember that, in 2022, under the previous Government, the department ran a…10 Sept 2025HANSARDSickness Benefits: In-person InterviewsThe noble Baroness is absolutely right: there is no doubt that there has been a growth in people claiming support and not being in work as a result of mental health conditions,…10 Sept 2025HANSARDSickness Benefits: In-person InterviewsMy Lords, I am sure that, if the noble Lord tracked those statistics back, he would see when the numbers began to rise—it was not under this Government. I know that he is making…10 Sept 2025HANSARDSickness Benefits: In-person InterviewsThere are various ways in which you can do an assessment. The starting point is that assessments can be done on paper where there is clear medical evidence of somebody’s diagnosis…10 Sept 2025HANSARDSickness Benefits: In-person InterviewsMy Lords, most assessments are done in assessment centres. Many of those are conducted by providers because we have to have health providers to do them. My noble friend may be…10 Sept 2025HANSARDSickness Benefits: In-person InterviewsMy Lords, face-to-face assessments were stopped during Covid, as they clearly could not happen on public health grounds. They resumed in mid-2021, but the fact is that the levels…10 Sept 2025HANSARDSickness Benefits: In-person InterviewsMy Lords, we already undertake a number of face-to-face health assessments for people applying for sickness benefits. However, as announced in the Pathways to Work Green Paper, we…10 Sept 2025HANSARDChild Poverty StrategyI thank the noble Baroness for her question. The Children’s Commissioner’s report, as I am sure she knows, made pretty harrowing reading—as it should. If we are going to tackle…10 Sept 2025