Oral Answers to Questions

Ann McKechin Excerpts

Thursday 12th December 2013 Commons Chamber

[Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)]

1. What steps she is taking to reduce the gender pay gap.

[Ann McKechin (Glasgow North) (Lab)]

6. What steps she is taking to reduce the gender pay gap.

[The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Maria Miller)]

This Government are committed to reducing the gender pay gap. Women have had the legal right to equal pay for nearly 40 years, but there is still a long way to go before we achieve equality in the workplace. The Government’s focus is on driving the necessary culture change in business, in particular through improving transparency.

[Maria Miller]

I am disappointed that the hon. Lady continues to follow this line of questioning, as she is at risk of scaremongering with her reference to the £1,200. She will know that the vast majority of individuals who want to bring a tribunal claim will pay a far lower fee and that our remissions scheme will protect those who cannot pay. I hope she will ensure that she is not scaremongering in this regard because pregnant women will want to know the facts about the support available to them.

[Ann McKechin]

We will not tackle the gender pay gap until we tackle gender segregation in apprenticeships. May I suggest that the Minister re-examine the conclusions of the Business, Innovation and Skills Committee in its “Women in the Workplace” report, and introduce a clear target and reporting strategy so that we can tackle that gender gap?

[Maria Miller]

The hon. Lady is right that we want to ensure that more women see apprenticeships as an opportunity to get into different fields, particularly STEM—science, technology, engineering and maths—related occupations. We know that the gender pay gap has a significant link to the career choices that women make, and apprenticeships have a good role to play.