Government Employment Strategy

It is a pleasure to be here. I feel a bit like an intruder because so far all the speakers have been members of the Committee—it is only the Front-Bench spokespeople who are not. Having listened to the quality of the contributions from all parties and all members of the Committee, it is clear that the Committee is well on top of its brief and knows what it is talking about. That comes through in its excellent report, which offers a strong critique of the Government’s employment strategy, albeit phrased in the careful, constructive, none the less critical language that we have heard from all members of the Committee. In particular, the Chairman, the hon. Member for Bradford, North (Mr. Rooney)—who I am sorry has left the Chamber so will not hear me say this—gave an excellent introduction to the debate and clearly set out the wide range of issues that need to be considered in relation to the Government’s employment strategy. The last sentence of the contribution of the hon. Member for North-East Derbyshire (Natascha Engel) summed the matter up: it is not the 80 per cent. target about which we are worried, it is how we will achieve it. That is the question. All parties think that it is right to have the objective of getting more people into employment, particularly from the disadvantaged groups that are mentioned in the report. That is the right objective and a considerable amount of good work is taking place. The Committee said in the report, and I believe strongly, that the overall employment strategy and target for significantly raising the employment levels of people with disabilities and on incapacity benefits must be a big part of successfully delivering on that objective. That is not a matter considered extensively in the report because it was the subject of a previous report by the Committee. None the less, it is important to place on record that if the numbers of people in employment in this country are to be significantly increased, it is important to get people off incapacity benefit or its successor—the employment and support allowance. The Minister and I spent many a happy hour in the Committee that considered the Welfare Reform Bill considering that matter in detail and I was delighted that many of the amendments introduced by the Liberal Democrats in Committee were accepted by the Government when the legislation reached the other place. That is a welcome sign of the Government’s willingness to listen. However, as the Chairman said in his excellent introduction, the Government response is thoroughly inadequate, and does not address many of the points that were made. It is uncharacteristic for the Minister to be inadequate; normally when we discuss these matters—not least at the recent international gathering on welfare reform—he is robust and clear in his opinions. That does not come through effectively in the Government’s response. Sitting suspended for a Division in the House. On resuming—