Work and Pensions

Guy Opperman Excerpts

Thursday 16th November 2023 Ministerial Corrections

[Greg Smith (Buckingham) (Con)]

16. What steps his Department is taking to support more parents into work. [900017]

[The Minister for Employment (Guy Opperman)]

There have been transformational changes in childcare, skills, training and support for future employers, as announced at the spring Budget. It is absolutely the case that from April 2024, eligible working parents of two-year-olds will be able to access 15 hours of free childcare per week from the term after the second birthday, plus there will be the delivery of more support for working parents of children over the age of nine months with 30 free hours of childcare. There is nowhere in the world that compares with our childcare offer on an ongoing basis. We have virtually Scandinavian levels.

[Official Report, 13 November 2023, Vol. 740, c. 371.]

Letter of correction from the then Minister for Employment, the hon. Member for Hexham (Guy Opperman):

An error has been identified in my response to my hon. Friend the Member for Buckingham (Greg Smith) during Work and Pensions questions. The response should have been:

[The Minister for Employment (Guy Opperman)]

There have been transformational changes in childcare, skills, training and support for future employers, as announced at the spring Budget. It is absolutely the case that from April 2024, eligible working parents of two-year-olds will be able to access 15 hours of free childcare per week from the term after the second birthday, plus there will be the delivery of more support for working parents of children over the age of nine months with 30 free hours of childcare. Our childcare offer, on an ongoing basis, is at virtually Scandinavian levels.