Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of proposed changes to the benefits system on family planning.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Department has not made such an assessment.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if his Department will list the employers which have been engaged with the Youth Guarantee scheme.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

Public and private sector employers, the third sector, and education and training providers are integral to the success of the Youth Guarantee. Many employers recognise that investing in young people and training their workforce drives both business success and economic growth.

We will be working closely with Youth Guarantee supporters and partners across the country to deliver jobs, apprenticeships, work experience and training places.

Employers will also benefit from a tailored DWP support service to help fill vacancies with Jobcentre candidates, including job description support, faster recruitment, vacancy promotion, use of Jobcentre space for interviews, access to the free Find a Job site, and expert advice from a dedicated Recruitment Manager.

Regarding the Jobs Guarantee for long-term unemployed young people, at this initial stage we will be delivering through partner organisations. We have started engaging with stakeholders through various forums and this will continue over the coming year.

The government will set out details of Youth Guarantee employers and partners in due course.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) private sector, (b) public sector and (c) third sector organisations have signed up to the Youth Guarantee scheme.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

Public and private sector employers, the third sector, and education and training providers are integral to the success of the Youth Guarantee. Many employers recognise that investing in young people and training their workforce drives both business success and economic growth.

We will be working closely with Youth Guarantee supporters and partners across the country to deliver jobs, apprenticeships, work experience and training places.

Employers will also benefit from a tailored DWP support service to help fill vacancies with Jobcentre candidates, including job description support, faster recruitment, vacancy promotion, use of Jobcentre space for interviews, access to the free Find a Job site, and expert advice from a dedicated Recruitment Manager.

Regarding the Jobs Guarantee for long-term unemployed young people, at this initial stage we will be delivering through partner organisations. We have started engaging with stakeholders through various forums and this will continue over the coming year.

The government will set out details of Youth Guarantee employers and partners in due course.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many providers of (a) apprenticeships, (b) training and (c) education have signed up to the Youth Guarantee scheme.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

Public and private sector employers, the third sector, and education and training providers are integral to the success of the Youth Guarantee. Many employers recognise that investing in young people and training their workforce drives both business success and economic growth.

We will be working closely with Youth Guarantee supporters and partners across the country to deliver jobs, apprenticeships, work experience and training places.

Employers will also benefit from a tailored DWP support service to help fill vacancies with Jobcentre candidates, including job description support, faster recruitment, vacancy promotion, use of Jobcentre space for interviews, access to the free Find a Job site, and expert advice from a dedicated Recruitment Manager.

Regarding the Jobs Guarantee for long-term unemployed young people, at this initial stage we will be delivering through partner organisations. We have started engaging with stakeholders through various forums and this will continue over the coming year.

The government will set out details of Youth Guarantee employers and partners in due course.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 5 January 2025 to Question 96708 on Access to Work Programme, what the salary bands are of people on the Access to Work scheme who are receiving payments per customer of (a) £40,000 - £49,999, (b) £50,000 - £59,999, (c) £60,000 - £69,999 and (d) above £70,000.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Department for Work and Pensions does not hold information on the salaries of Access to Work recipients. Access to Work eligibility is not linked to salary, so this information is not routinely collected by the Department.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has used international examples of reforms to (a) sickness and (b) disability benefits to help inform his policies.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Department uses a range of evidence, including international examples, when developing policy. For instance, the Pathways to Work Green Paper included a range of international systems that were considered when developing the proposals.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate his Department has made of the number of positions funded under the Youth Guarantee that would anyway have been created by the private sector.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Jobs Guarantee will help young people to move closer to and into sustained employment. The Jobs Guarantee is aimed at young people who face multiple barriers to work, with the scheme targeting those who are 18-21 years old who have been on Universal Credit and looking for work for 18 months.

We will provide more detail in the coming weeks on how the scheme will be delivered. The scheme will enable young people to access suitable vacancies, with additional, tailored support provided to help young people start roles and succeed throughout their employment.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of jobs under the Youth Guarantee will be fully funded by his Department; and for how long those jobs will be fully funded.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

As part of the Youth Guarantee, we are breaking the cycle of unemployment by guaranteeing paid work for every eligible 18–21-year old who has been on Universal Credit, looking for work, for 18 months. All Jobs Guarantee scheme jobs will be fully funded by the Department and will provide six months of paid employment. This will reach around 55,000 young people over the next three years.

This will help young people take that crucial first step into sustained employment, supporting the government’s long-term ambition to increase the employment rate.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Departmental employees are in the UK on a visa, by their visa status.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

The information you have requested is not held on central data systems in a reportable format, it would need to be provided by individuals manually collating data from a local source. Gathering this data would therefore incur disproportionate costs.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the Youth Guarantee on the jobs market.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Youth Guarantee aims to increase opportunities for 16-24-year-olds to make them work-ready and equipped to thrive. Success will be measured by improvement in employment outcomes, reduction in economic inactivity, and an increase in participation in education and training. We will monitor these outcomes nationally for all Youth Guarantee participants. This will build on already commissioned evaluation of eight Youth Guarantee Trailblazers and a planned full process evaluation of the Jobs Guarantee.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to assess the suitability of people for each job under the Youth Guarantee.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

As part of the wider Youth Guarantee, the Jobs Guarantee scheme will provide six months of paid employment for every eligible 18 to 21-year-old who has been on Universal Credit and looking for work for 18 months. The scheme will break the cycle of unemployment by guaranteeing meaningful paid employment opportunities that might otherwise be out of reach.

Appropriate requirements will be built into the scheme, with guidance provided to those delivering the Jobs Guarantee to ensure that opportunities are high quality, fair and deliver the intended outcomes for young people.

A critical part of the Jobs Guarantee will be the provision of wraparound support to ensure that young people are able to take that crucial first step into employment, and to further develop the required skills and experience needed for the move into sustained employment.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to ensure job placements are carried out fully under the Youth Guarantee.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

As part of the wider Youth Guarantee, the Jobs Guarantee scheme will provide six months of paid employment for every eligible 18 to 21-year-old who has been on Universal Credit and looking for work for 18 months. The scheme will break the cycle of unemployment by guaranteeing meaningful paid employment opportunities that might otherwise be out of reach.

Appropriate requirements will be built into the scheme, with guidance provided to those delivering the Jobs Guarantee to ensure that opportunities are high quality, fair and deliver the intended outcomes for young people.

A critical part of the Jobs Guarantee will be the provision of wraparound support to ensure that young people are able to take that crucial first step into employment, and to further develop the required skills and experience needed for the move into sustained employment.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the quality of jobs available under the Youth Guarantee.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

As part of the wider Youth Guarantee, the Jobs Guarantee scheme will provide six months of paid employment for every eligible 18 to 21-year-old who has been on Universal Credit and looking for work for 18 months. The scheme will break the cycle of unemployment by guaranteeing meaningful paid employment opportunities that might otherwise be out of reach.

Appropriate requirements will be built into the scheme, with guidance provided to those delivering the Jobs Guarantee to ensure that opportunities are high quality, fair and deliver the intended outcomes for young people.

A critical part of the Jobs Guarantee will be the provision of wraparound support to ensure that young people are able to take that crucial first step into employment, and to further develop the required skills and experience needed for the move into sustained employment.