Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Maria Miller and Luciana Berger

Thursday 20th June 2013 Commons Chamber

[Maria Miller]

My right hon. Friend will know that John Witherow has been appointed as acting editor of The Times. Appointing a new editor of The Times is a matter for the independent national directors and shareholders. There would be an opportunity to intervene to enforce the requirement for separate publications to be maintained; that is really where my powers come into play.

[Luciana Berger (Liverpool, Wavertree) (Lab/Co-op)]

The international festival for business is a national event, which next year will take place in Liverpool in June and July. A quarter of a million visitors are expected. It is supported by the Prime Minister, and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills is providing significant financial resource. What support will DCMS provide to ensure that the cultural offer that supports the conference and the other events is significant and promotes all that the top arts and creative industries have to provide?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Maria Miller and Luciana Berger

Thursday 18th October 2012 Commons Chamber

[Maria Miller]

I pay tribute to the excellent work that my hon. Friend does in her constituency to support businesses. She is absolutely right that mentoring is a vital part of helping more women get involved in business. The Home Secretary announced funding of £600,000 towards to the Get Mentoring initiative last year, and to date more than 10,000 volunteer mentors have been trained, 42% of whom are female, and I announced a further £100,000 for this initiative last month.

[Luciana Berger (Liverpool, Wavertree) (Lab/Co-op)]

I recently attended a fantastic event in Liverpool organised by the Women’s Organisation specifically on how women could access finance. I heard at first hand the challenges that many women face when they try build their businesses. Is the Minister concerned that, according to the Department for Work and Pensions, last year just 17% of people benefiting from a new enterprise allowance scheme were women? Does she agree that this flagship policy is failing properly to support women’s entrepreneurship?

[Maria Miller]

I am sure that the hon. Lady knows that earlier this month changes were announced to the new enterprise allowance scheme, and there is now day-one access for people on jobseeker’s allowance, which will open it up to more people. Also, we are already doing extensive work on access to finance, and will be publishing our response shortly.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Maria Miller and Luciana Berger

Monday 22nd November 2010 Commons Chamber

[Maria Miller]

I can assure the right hon. Gentleman that the support his constituent will need in order to get to work will be available through either his disability living allowance or access to work. There are clear opportunities for his constituent to get the support he needs.

[Luciana Berger (Liverpool, Wavertree) (Lab/Co-op)]

How do the Government believe that removing the mobility component of DLA for people living in residential care homes helps disabled people back into work, or enables disabled people who—like a number of my constituents who came to see me in my surgery last week—currently depend on their mobility allowance to get to and from work, to stay in work?

[Maria Miller]

The hon. Lady is right to be concerned that constituents of hers should be able to get to work, and that is why we have support in place for those not in residential care through DLA and also through access to work. That is an important programme that helps many thousands of people get into employment, and we will be supporting more people into employment through access to work this year than last year.