Oral Answers to Questions

Matthew Offord Excerpts

Monday 12th November 2018 Commons Chamber

[Adam Afriyie (Windsor) (Con)]

10. What steps his Department is taking to improve social mobility.

[Dr Matthew Offord (Hendon) (Con)]

20. What steps his Department is taking to improve social mobility.

[The Secretary of State for Education (Damian Hinds)]

Social mobility is a top priority right across the Department, from the early years at school to supporting disadvantaged students into university and improving technical education.

--- Later in debate ---

[Dr Offord]

A recent OECD report stated that the children of poor families are likely to take five generations to start to earn an average income, compared with two generations for families in Denmark and three in Sweden. Why has it taken the United Kingdom so long to bridge this gap?

[Damian Hinds]

These are big topics and, indeed, stubborn statistics that take quite some time to move. As anybody who has compared the 1970 cohort with the 1958 cohort will attest, it is a problem that goes back through multiple Governments, but we need to keep working on it. The most recent OECD statistics show a more encouraging picture than there was previously thought to be. [Interruption.]