Oral Answers to Questions
Brian Leishman Excerpts(1 month ago)
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Alison McGovern
I hope the hon. Lady will understand from the tone of what I said that this matter is urgent and that we are working quickly and will bring forward proposals as soon as we can.
Brian Leishman (Alloa and Grangemouth) (Lab)
Alarmingly, there has been talk of ruthless cuts to welfare. That would be utterly devastating as any cuts would push more families into poverty. We will not see a reduction to child poverty by economic growth alone; it will require targeted policy action—something that the Trussell Trust and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation agree with in their essentials guarantee. Do Ministers have plans to change the basic rate of universal credit so that it reflects the cost of life’s essentials—food and household bills?
Alison McGovern
As I have said several times, we are working quickly to bring forward the detail of that plan. In fact, only last week we had a parliamentary engagement session so that colleagues across the House could be brought up to speed on the detail of that work. I sat on the Opposition Benches and watched for 14 years as the Conservatives put our children into poverty. We will waste no time in dealing with this problem.
Women’s State Pension Age Communication: PHSO Report
Brian Leishman Excerpts(2 months, 2 weeks ago)
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Liz Kendall
I am happy to write to the right hon. Gentleman about this research and its findings, which are robust. I reflect on the fact that three of the sample cases that the ombudsman looked into had received a letter, but I am more than happy to provide him with the details of that research.
Brian Leishman (Alloa and Grangemouth) (Lab)
In the framing of my question to the Secretary of State, I first wish to say that I am appalled by this announcement. I have campaigned with WASPI women, as have many parliamentary colleagues, and this is an incredible let down for them. In my opinion, WASPI women certainly do not need words of disappointment and hollow statements. What they need is justice. Does the Secretary of State not agree with that?
Liz Kendall
I believe that this is a difficult decision, but the right and fair one. We accept that there has been maladministration. Once the Department had reached its decision, those letters should have been sent out. For the reasons that I have explained, we do not accept the ombudsman’s approach to injustice, remedy or compensation. We have to take difficult decisions in government, but this is about what I think is right and fair. I am happy to meet my hon. Friend to discuss the matter in more detail if he so wishes.
Food Banks
Brian Leishman Excerpts(3 months, 2 weeks ago)
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Brian Leishman (Alloa and Grangemouth) (Lab)
I thank the hon. Member for Aberdeenshire North and Moray East (Seamus Logan) for securing this vital debate. Austerity is, of course, ideologically driven. It was, in the first instance, an assault on the most vulnerable and the poorest in society. As poverty grew, we saw a decade in which the wealthiest in society accelerated away from everyone else as they enjoyed tax cuts. Obviously, gross inequality followed. Areas such as my constituency have seen industry leave and low-wage insecure employment become the norm, with rising poverty and suicide rates, and decreasing life expectancy.
Austerity has ripped the soul out of Britain, and has naturally increased food bank usage. After this ideological assault on the poorest and most vulnerable, a new target was needed. This was neatly labelled as the cost of living crisis, but really it was a continuation of the degradation of working-class people.
To show how things have changed, I am 42 and when I was at school, if there was a classmate who was poor, it was probably because mum and dad did not work. Nowadays, we have the creation of a new strand of society—the in-work poor. That is a situation where both mum and dad work full-time jobs but still do not have enough to put food on the table. The scale of the cost of living crisis cannot be denied—rocketing energy bills, increased food costs, wage suppression and stagnation and out-of-control inflation. Austerity and the cost of living crisis have been crises for the poorest, most vulnerable and most disadvantaged and for the working class. It is little wonder that food bank usage is what it is.
The Government cannot afford to tinker around the edges when it comes to what we do—we must transform society. The welfare system, as has been mentioned, needs to be changed. Universal credit is too low. People cannot afford the basic essentials needed merely to get by and to meet their basic needs for food, heating, toiletry and accommodation costs. The decline of local councils is well documented. It is local councils that provide vital public services. England has seen local councils declare bankruptcy, and that is a realistic possibility for Scottish local authorities. Bankruptcy is the result of councils eventually buckling under the strain of rising costs and funding cuts. Now is not the time for the Government to have limited ambition.
