Oral Answers to Questions Debate

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Department: Department for Education

Oral Answers to Questions

Liz McInnes Excerpts
Tuesday 3rd May 2016

(8 years, 6 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Lord Johnson of Marylebone Portrait Joseph Johnson
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We have established the Careers & Enterprise Company to make sure that all young people know about the opportunities available to them through our higher education reforms. We are also giving students more information than ever before about their course choice, and we have introduced degree apprenticeships as a new route into the professions. We want to see universities playing their part too, which is why I have asked the director of fair access to continue to focus on access to the professions in his work with universities.

Liz McInnes Portrait Liz McInnes (Heywood and Middleton) (Lab)
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T5. A total of 11,000 BHS employees face an uncertain future over not just their jobs, but their pensions. Where will the Secretary of State place responsibility for filling the pension fund black hole? Will it be with the taxpayer or with the owners of the company, who paid themselves more than £400 million in dividends while the pension fund was driven into the ground?

Sajid Javid Portrait Sajid Javid
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The hon. Lady will know that if, sadly, defined benefit pension funds have trouble, we have the Pension Protection Fund in place, but of course we should always examine why a pension fund may need recourse to the PPF. That job should be done by independent regulators, not politicians.