Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Charlie Elphicke and Maria Miller

Thursday 22nd November 2012 Commons Chamber

[Maria Miller]

I know from personal experience that at the heart of everything the Department does is giving people an opportunity to play a full role in society and looking at people for what they can do, not what they cannot do. That is exactly what we should be doing to support disabled people into work.

[Charlie Elphicke (Dover) (Con)]

5. What steps she is taking to support more women into work.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Charlie Elphicke and Maria Miller

Monday 25th June 2012 Commons Chamber

[Maria Miller]

I have to applaud my hon. Friend for saying things that Labour Members sometimes do not agree with. He is very courageous in that. The Government have set out their commitment to equality. It would not be right for us to see an increase in the amount of money being spent on segregated employment if we have equality at the centre of our thoughts—and we do.

[Charlie Elphicke (Dover) (Con)]

9. What steps he is taking to help separated parents resolve maintenance and contact problems.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Maria Miller)]

It is unacceptable that only 50% of children in separated families benefit from an effective child maintenance arrangement. That is why we are fundamentally reforming the child maintenance system, and it is also why we recently launched our consultation on shared parenting.

[Charlie Elphicke]

To turn to the issue of contact, does the Minister agree that it is a fundamental right of every child to know and have a relationship with both parents, and that parents who stand in the way of that right are abusing the rights of their children?

[Maria Miller]

I pay tribute to my hon. Friend for the work he has done in this area and for his private Member’s Bill. He is absolutely right that all the evidence shows that children who maintain contact with both parents have a much better outlook on life. We are considering not only shared parenting in our consultation, but how we can help more families to work together on child maintenance outside the statutory system in a way that will help them work together on all the issues around a child’s life.