Oral Answers to Questions

Iain Stewart Excerpts

Tuesday 5th June 2018 Commons Chamber

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

11. What assessment he has made of the role of employment and education in reducing rates of reoffending.

[Iain Stewart (Milton Keynes South) (Con)]

21. What steps the Government are taking to improve access for offenders to education and employment.

[Alan Mak (Havant) (Con)]

22. What assessment he has made of the role of employment and education in reducing rates of reoffending.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Gauke]

I pay tribute to my hon. Friend for his work on the Homelessness Reduction Act, which was a significant achievement. In respect of making sure that the incentives in the system are right, my hon. Friend absolutely hits the nail on the head. I am determined to ensure that we have the right incentives in the system to reward good behaviour and to bring down reoffending.

[Iain Stewart]

Milton Keynes College is a leading provider of offender-learning programmes. I have discussed the New Futures Network with college staff, and while they welcome the Government’s new strategy, they and I would be grateful for further details of how employers will be incentivised, and perhaps even mandated, to employ a certain percentage of ex-offenders.

[Mr Gauke]

Our approach is to encourage employers to take on ex-offenders. Some employers do marvellous work and not only make a real contribution to society, but find that they get very good employees. There are also employers who, frankly, are not engaging at all. There has been a change in public mood on this issue and we want to encourage much more engagement. We all have a role to play.