Speech in Lords Chamber - Thu 13 Nov 2025 Jobs Market
"My Lords, I thank the Minister for her statistics, but the latest ONS figures show unemployment has risen from 4.8% to 5%—the highest level for four years. On that basis, can the Minister share concern that the UK’s sluggish productivity growth and skills shortages are still holding back economic recovery? …..." Lord Palmer of Childs Hill - View Speech
"My Lords, I thank the Minister for her constructive approach. It has not always answered all the questions but it has gone a long way towards that. I put on record our thanks to the noble Lord, Lord Vaux, for his constructive initiatives on which some of these amendments are …..." Lord Palmer of Childs Hill - View Speech
"My Lords, I thank the Government for listening to some of the points made by the noble Baroness, Lady Finn, myself and others. We are dealing here with Motions A, B and D, so let me deal with Motion A first. The Lords amendment aimed to give more powers to …..." Lord Palmer of Childs Hill - View Speech
"My Lords, I thank the Government and the Minister for their comments. When we debated this earlier, we talked about who was going to represent and who was not. I felt at the time that there was an undue feeling that we were trying to get at trade unions. That …..." Lord Palmer of Childs Hill - View Speech
"My Lords, can the Minister add to her comments by providing an update on the publication of the Charlie Mayfield report into employment for people with long-term sickness and disabilities? We have been waiting for that report for some months...." Lord Palmer of Childs Hill - View Speech
"My Lords, I am probably the last person to speak and mull over all that has happened. I thank sincerely the noble Baronesses, Lady Sherlock and Lady Anderson, and their team. They have been very helpful to us in answering our questions, trying to agree with us and offering a …..." Lord Palmer of Childs Hill - View Speech
"My Lords, that sounds a very optimistic viewpoint from the Minister. However, the reports are that staff stress levels are at historic heights, and many are leaving for better pay and less stress. Aligned to that, staff shortages also mean less support for vulnerable clients. Can the Minister give a …..." Lord Palmer of Childs Hill - View Speech
"My Lords, on these Benches, we welcome the agreement reached with the devolved Administrations—may this be a lesson to people around the world on how to deal with them, at least in this case.
"My Lords, I take this opportunity to refer to the title of this Bill, which is not just “Fraud” but “Fraud, Error and Recovery”. What we are really dealing with is unintentional error. If you are at the bottom of the food chain, worrying how to pay for your food …..." Lord Palmer of Childs Hill - View Speech
"My Lords, throughout the passage of the Bill, we on these Benches have repeatedly raised concerns about the punitive measures applied to carers who receive carer’s allowance and subsequently earn small amounts through additional work, often losing their carer’s allowance entirely. Amendment 103 would prohibit the Secretary of State using …..." Lord Palmer of Childs Hill - View Speech