"My Lords, the Minister acknowledges the sight-loss employment gap. How many full-time equivalent disability employment advisers are employed by the DWP—and do all DEAs have specific sight-loss training? Do access to work assessors and jobcentre staff have sight-loss training and, if they do not, will the Government seek to remedy …..." Baroness Kramer - View Speech
"My Lords, I will take these two statutory instruments in the order in which they are on the Order Paper, which is the reverse of the Minister’s discussion. That is not a criticism; it is just to explain where I am starting from.
"My Lords, the Minister will be aware from things I have said previously that it would be worth taking a look at the Swedish approach and that of some other countries to an open Budget process that gets away from the kind of shenanigans that we saw in the past …..." Baroness Kramer - View Speech
"My Lords, I recognise that there has been an element of contrivance in the usage of the present employee car ownership schemes which the Government are closing down, although the delay is welcome. Right now, so many businesses are under stress, as well as the automotive sector generally. Will the …..." Baroness Kramer - View Speech
"My Lords, as the first of the winding speakers, let me repeat the welcome to the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Portsmouth and say how much we enjoyed his excellent maiden speech, which I will refer to later.
"My Lords, this really has been a bit of an omnishambles with announcements, scene-setting musings, U-turns, misstatements and leaks—speculation that, for a time at least, spooked the markets, raising interest rates on government debt and causing such uncertainty that businesses and individuals delayed or abandoned decisions. We in this House …..." Baroness Kramer - View Speech
"Can the Minister comment on the fact that the Government’s consultation for the new cycling and walking investment strategy for England does not set any specific targets to increase those modes of transport, and there are no KPIs to make it more inclusive for people with disabilities, for example? Will …..." Baroness Kramer - View Speech
"My Lords, can the Minister tell us whether there are any significant measures in the Budget which have not been announced in advance or leaked? I would invite him to mention them to us, then he can have a clean slate...." Baroness Kramer - View Speech
"My Lords, the country was led up the hill and then marched right back down again. Does the Minister recognise that this sort of kite-flying is really undermining confidence in the comments that anybody now makes from the Treasury Benches? Does he accept that, although bond yields steadied a few …..." Baroness Kramer - View Speech