Oral Answers to Questions

Gill German Excerpts

Thursday 5th December 2024 Commons Chamber

[Pat McFadden]

Let me assure the hon. Lady that my right hon. Friend the Paymaster General, who leads on this, is fully aware of the issues she has raised. He is working with the groups affected and is determined to ensure that initial payments are out by the end of the year.

[Gill German (Clwyd North) (Lab)]

T4.   This Government have rightly made tackling child poverty a top priority. Of course, this is not a children problem but a society problem, so I welcome the cross-Departmental approach that has been taken. Last week, the “Get Britain Working” White Paper was published. Does my hon. Friend agree that helping people, particularly parents, into decent, well-paid jobs is a key part of that agenda?

[The Minister without Portfolio (Ellie Reeves)]

It is shameful that child poverty increased by 700,000 under the last Government. Tackling child poverty is at the heart of this Government’s mission. The child poverty taskforce, which I sit on, will publish its strategy in the spring. Increasing the number of parents who are working, and their earnings and hours, plays a crucial role and that is why our plans to get Britain working and the Employment Rights Bill are important in tackling the scourge of child poverty.

Oral Answers to Questions

Gill German Excerpts

Wednesday 9th October 2024 Commons Chamber

[Anneliese Dodds]

The reality is that we saw reported rates of different forms of violence against women and girls rise repeatedly under the previous Government, and charge rates fell shamefully low. The Government will not stand by in the face of that national emergency. We will act. That is why we have set a cross-Government mission—no more talk but action—and we are determined to deliver it for the sake of women and girls.

[Gill German (Clwyd North) (Lab)]

3. What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to tackle the impact of socioeconomic disadvantage on future earnings.

[Dr Beccy Cooper (Worthing West) (Lab)]

13. What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to tackle the impact of socioeconomic disadvantage on future earnings.

[The Minister for Women and Equalities (Bridget Phillipson)]

The Government are committed to breaking the link between young people’s backgrounds and their future success. I am proud to lead our opportunity mission across government, through which we will ensure that every child thrives in education and achieves their ambitions in work and later life, no matter what their background.

[Gill German]

In Wales, breaking down barriers to opportunity has long been an area of work, but with so many levers of change having been in the hands of a UK Tory Government, success over the past 14 years has been greatly hampered. Will my right hon. Friend assure me that Cabinet colleagues in this Government will work closely with Welsh Government partners, so that future earnings in Clwyd North reflect the huge potential that I see in our children and young people every day?

[Bridget Phillipson]

Yes, I give my hon. Friend that assurance. We will work closely with devolved Governments to make sure that we are all pulling together to break down the barriers that too many of our young people face. That is why the work on child poverty that the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and I are leading on is so crucial. We know that child poverty is an issue that blights too many lives across the UK.