Oral Answers to Questions

Lord Hanson of Flint Excerpts

Monday 7th December 2015 Commons Chamber

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

4. What assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the trial of locating jobcentre advisers at food banks.

[Mr David Hanson (Delyn) (Lab)]

10. What assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the trial of locating jobcentre advisers at food banks.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Mr Shailesh Vara)]

Jobcentre work coaches undertake outreach work every day in local communities and have recently been helping people with back-to-work support and advice at the Lalley Welcome Centre in Manchester, where a food bank sits alongside other support services. The test is at an early stage and the Department will make the findings public in due course.

[Mr Vara]

May I gently remind the hon. Lady that we were invited, at the request of Sister Rita, to go to Lalley Welcome Centre, which also hosts other agencies? I might also say to the hon. Lady that that particular centre has a job club, which makes eminent sense. I presume she does not object to that. If she is happy to have a job club there, why on earth does she object to our going there to help people when we have been invited to go there?

[Mr Hanson]

Will the Minister confirm whether Lord Prior will join in the evaluation of services at that job centre and food bank? As the Minister will know, Lord Prior has indicated that obesity seems to be a problem, rather than poverty. Will the Minister confirm whether the evaluation will include an examination of the reasons why sanctions and benefit delays cause problems for those going to food banks?

[Mr Vara]

There are now fewer delays in getting benefits than there were under the Government in which the right hon. Gentleman served. The number of JSA applications is down compared with 2009-10, as is the number of ESA applications.