Welfare Reform Bill

I have some difficulty with these amendments, except for the clause stand part. My noble friend will not be surprised to hear that the TUC is totally opposed to the contracting out of JCP functions. It has pointed out on innumerable occasions that privatised employment programmes do not outperform those provided by Jobcentre Plus, and gives a number of examples. It also makes the strong point that contracting out, which is currently undertaken by Jobcentre Plus, may eventually undermine the Government’s ability to intervene directly in the labour market. That is an important point in view of the unemployment that we now face throughout the economy. One of the ways in which a number of us feel that unemployment can be dealt with effectively is through intervention by the Government in appropriate situations to try to ensure that employment is maintained for a large part of the workforce. The current negotiations with providers about possible new contracting-out arrangements to take account of the sudden increase in unemployment indicate just how slow and unresponsive a contact-based system can be. I feel inclined to support the noble Lord, Lord Skelmersdale, if he were to press his motion to oppose the Question that Clause 25 should stand part of the Bill. Whether it is on the same basis, I do not know; I am not certain that he would oppose it on quite the same grounds as me. I oppose contracting out what should be a government service.