Welfare Reform Bill

Perhaps I can deal with the last point first. The suggestion that mothers cannot effectively be full-time mothers and involved in a progression-to-work group is not something that we accept, nor is it part of the structure of the Bill. To recap, the thrust of the proposals is to identify people who are work-ready. That certainly would not include a lone parent, for example, whose youngest child was under seven. But we shall test through a pathfinder a requirement for work-related activity, subject to safeguards when the youngest child is between three and six. We are doing that for the reasons that we discussed extensively. Work is important, as is the impact on children of parents being in work, as well as family circumstances being better out of poverty. That is not to diminish or fail to recognise the huge responsibilities that go with parenting, particularly for lone parents. I strongly make the point that that should not preclude the engagement, subject to protections, of people in the labour market.