Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Viscount Younger of Leckie on 24 April (HL3765), what plans they have to collect data to evaluate the success of the two-child benefit cap, especially in relation to the statements in the 2015 Impact Assessment which suggest the two-child limit would (1) encourage parents to consider their readiness to support an additional child, (2) help people move into sustained employment, and (3) provide incentives to have fewer children.

Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Shadow Minister (Work and Pensions)

There are no such plans to collect data to evaluate the success of the two-child benefit cap. The Department committed to publishing statistics related to the policy to provide support for a maximum of two children annually. The latest statistics were published in July 2023 and can be accessed at: Universal Credit and Child Tax Credit claimants: statistics related to the policy to provide support for a maximum of two children, April 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

DWP is committed to supporting families and helping parents into work. This requires a balanced system that provides strong work incentives and support for those who need it, but that also ensures a sense of fairness to the taxpayer and many working families who do not see their incomes rise when they have more children.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Barran on 29 April (HL3846), what plans they have to (1) roll out Family Hubs to the remaining 242 local authorities, and (2) sustain the funding for the Family Hubs programme beyond 2025.

Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)

The department is currently investing around £300 million in 75 local authorities, half of all upper tier local authorities in England, to transform to a Family Hub model. Funding has been targeted to the most deprived local authorities, ensuring families get the support they need.

The department has also invested in a £12 million transformation fund to open Family Hubs in 13 additional local authorities in England.

All 88 local authorities now have opened at least one Family Hub, with over 400 government-funded Family Hub sites now open across the country.

Further funding for the current programmes is dependent on future fiscal events. It was confirmed at Spring Budget that the next spending review will come after a General Election, the timing of which is still to be determined.

The government would like to see Family Hubs across the country, but it is crucial that the department now focuses on delivering well in these local authorities and building the evidence base.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask His Majesty's Government what analyses they carried out to suggest that disability benefit reforms will increase the employment rate of people with disabilities.

Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Pathways to Work Green Paper sets out our plans for reform to stop people from falling into inactivity, restore trust and fairness in the system and protect disabled people.

The disability employment rate is affected by external factors such as the composition of the underlying disabled population and overall labour market performance, as well as DWP activity. The Office of Budget Responsibility has committed to produce an assessment of the labour market impacts of the proposals in the Pathways to Work Green Paper at the time of the autumn budget.

Information on the impacts of the Pathways to Work Green Paper will be published in due course, and some information was published alongside the Spring Statement. These publications can be found in ‘Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working Green Paper’.

A further programme of analysis to support development of the proposals in the Green Paper will be developed and undertaken in the coming months.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they will take to evaluate the impact of disability benefits reform on the employment rate of people with disabilities.

Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Office of Budget Responsibility has committed to produce an assessment of the labour market impacts of the proposals in the Pathways to Work Green Paper at the time of the autumn budget.

Information on the impacts of the Pathways to Work Green Paper will be published in due course, and some information was published alongside the Spring Statement. These publications can be found in ‘Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working Green Paper’.

A programme of analysis to support development and evaluation of the proposals in the Green Paper will be developed in the coming months.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the potential impact of reforms to incapacity and disability benefits on the employment rate of people with disabilities; and what plans they have to evaluate and monitor the impact of these reforms once they have been introduced.

Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Pathways to Work Green Paper sets out our plans for reform to stop people from falling into inactivity, restore trust and fairness in the system and protect disabled people.

The plans include increased funding for employment support for disabled people, rising to an additional £1 billion per year by the end of the Parliament.

The Office of Budget Responsibility has committed to produce an assessment of the labour market impacts of the proposals in the Pathways to Work Green Paper at the time of the autumn budget.

Information on the impacts of the Pathways to Work Green Paper will be published in due course, and some information was published alongside the Spring Statement. These publications can be found in ‘Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working Green Paper’.

A further programme of analysis to support development of the proposals in the Green Paper and to monitor and evaluate their impact will be developed and undertaken in the coming months.

Found: supported by Lord Aberdare, Lord Boateng, Baroness Keeley, Lord Knight of Weymouth, the Lord Bishop of Leicester

Found: After Clause 96 BARONESS LISTER OF BURTERSETT BARONESS BENNETT OF MANOR CASTLE THE LORD BISHOP OF LEICESTER

Found: LORD WILLS 162_ [Withdrawn] LORD BIRD BARONESS LISTER OF BURTERSETT THE LORD BISHOP OF LEICESTER

Found: After Clause 96 BARONESS LISTER OF BURTERSETT BARONESS BENNETT OF MANOR CASTLE THE LORD BISHOP OF LEICESTER

Found: 31 Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill LORD BIRD BARONESS LISTER OF BURTERSETT THE LORD BISHOP OF LEICESTER

Found: After Clause 96 BARONESS LISTER OF BURTERSETT BARONESS BENNETT OF MANOR CASTLE THE LORD BISHOP OF LEICESTER

Found: 43 Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill LORD BIRD BARONESS LISTER OF BURTERSETT THE LORD BISHOP OF LEICESTER

Found: Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill 42 LORD BIRD BARONESS LISTER OF BURTERSETT THE LORD BISHOP OF LEICESTER

Found: After Clause 96 BARONESS LISTER OF BURTERSETT BARONESS BENNETT OF MANOR CASTLE THE LORD BISHOP OF LEICESTER

Found: After Clause 96 BARONESS LISTER OF BURTERSETT BARONESS BENNETT OF MANOR CASTLE THE LORD BISHOP OF LEICESTER

Found: Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill 52 LORD BIRD BARONESS LISTER OF BURTERSETT THE LORD BISHOP OF LEICESTER

Found: After Clause 96 BARONESS LISTER OF BURTERSETT BARONESS BENNETT OF MANOR CASTLE THE LORD BISHOP OF LEICESTER

Found: After Clause 96 BARONESS LISTER OF BURTERSETT BARONESS BENNETT OF MANOR CASTLE THE LORD BISHOP OF LEICESTER

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Found: LORD BIRD BARONESS LISTER OF BURTERSETT THE LORD BISHOP OF LEICESTER LORD HAMPTON 163_ After Clause

Found: LORD BIRD BARONESS LISTER OF BURTERSETT THE LORD BISHOP OF LEICESTER LORD HAMPTON 163_ After Clause

Found: LORD BIRD BARONESS LISTER OF BURTERSETT THE LORD BISHOP OF LEICESTER LORD HAMPTON _ After Clause

Found: LORD BIRD BARONESS LISTER OF BURTERSETT THE LORD BISHOP OF LEICESTER LORD HAMPTON _ After Clause