Oral Answers to Questions

Mark Fletcher Excerpts

Monday 13th December 2021 Commons Chamber

[Guy Opperman]

That is a bit rich. When the last Labour Government were in power, the state pension was under £100; it is now going up to £185 going forward. It is almost double what it was before thanks to the triple lock introduced by this Government and the coalition Government. It is also very much the case that pension credit take-up is actually going up, not down. Over the two years of the pandemic, both the basic and new state pension will have increased by more than prices thanks to the cumulative effects of the Social Security (Up-rating of Benefits) Act 2020 and the Social Security (Up-rating of Benefits) Act 2021.

[Mark Fletcher (Bolsover) (Con)]

11. What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to ensure cross-Government delivery of the national disability strategy.

[The Minister of State, Department for Work and Pensions (Chloe Smith)]

The entire Government are committed to transforming the everyday lives of disabled people through the national disability strategy because we want to build back better and fairer. A number of commitments have already been delivered. I chair quarterly meetings with the ministerial disability champions to drive progress.

[Mark Fletcher]

Increasing employment opportunities is key to supporting independent living for disabled people and people with health conditions. Will the Minister reaffirm our commitment to supporting 1 million disabled people into work by 2027?