Welfare Reform Bill

My Lords, I thank all noble Lords who have spoken in the debate. Everyone has supported the government amendments. I will return in a moment to the amendments of the noble Lord, Lord Northbourne. I accept that they are probing amendments, which the Government are not able to accept. I say to the noble Lord, Lord Freud, that I accept and appreciate the broad support that has been given by his Benches to the Bill. In relation to the debate that we had on the action plan, and the extent of the detail in the plans and the activity levels required, I have tried to explain that we see this as a journey. When the youngest child is three or four, the level of activity is likely to be less than when the youngest child approaches the age of seven, which is the point at which the parent will enter the jobseeker’s allowance regime, with the full conditionality that goes with it. We see it as a journey, which is why, in the early days, the requirements on lone parents would be quite gentle. It might be just one activity in the course of a quarter between two work-focused interviews. It might be going along to a children’s centre or going to get support to sort out the parent’s finances. If the lone parent wishes to do more, there will be the opportunity for that. That is the journey that we see—a progression towards the time when individuals will be subject to the full conditionality of jobseeker’s allowance. The noble Lord posed a broader point about family structures and what the Government have done to support those structures. We could spend a lot of time debating what the Government have done in the way of tax credits and supporting families, and particularly children, making what I believe to be significant improvements in our society. Hundreds of thousands of children have been taken out of poverty but there are still some challenges to go. The forward direction of the welfare system is partly addressed in the Bill before us. We have promised in due course a White Paper, which will map out the steps going forward. I think I would characterise this group of government amendments as focusing on family-friendly issues, particularly support for and recognition of the role that parents have in bringing up, supporting and caring for their children. That is the direction from which we have come and on which we are embarked. The noble Lord, Lord Kirkwood, asked about the position before the progression-to-work changes and what conditionality would apply to lone parents with children under the age of seven. Such parents would typically be on income support. I do not think that they would be precluded from employment and support allowance, but that would obviously depend on their circumstances. The conditionality applied would generally be turning up for work-focused interviews. If the parent was on employment and support allowance, they could be in a pathways system, rather than on income support, where by and large there would be engagement with Jobcentre Plus. I shall check but I think I am right in saying that parents in that position are still able to volunteer for the New Deal support that is on offer. I see reassuring nods from the Box, where I think the heads are going up and down rather than sideways, so I have some confidence in that remark. I turn to address more specifically the amendments of the noble Lord, Lord Northbourne. I accept that they are probing and therefore hope that he will not press them. With regard to child maintenance, there are technical rules on shared care, based on the payment of child benefit and the number of nights spent with each parent. I think that the noble Lord was involved in our debates on the Child Maintenance and Other Payments Bill the year before last, although it seems like only yesterday. The benefits system assumes that the child is cared for by the parent receiving the child benefit. We have looked at other systems but they all have considerable practical problems. I should also make the point that the childcare flexibility, good cause and well-being safeguards apply to all parents, not just lone parents. That is very important. Again, I am grateful for the comments from the noble Baroness, Lady Afshar, who has been supportive of and has engaged in these provisions. We are grateful for that. With that, I ask for support for the government amendments and ask the noble Lord, Lord Northbourne, not to press his amendments.