Social Mobility Commission

John Bercow Excerpts

Monday 4th December 2017 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

We are about to come to the right hon. Member for Twickenham (Sir Vince Cable) and his urgent question. Let me say to the House that this is not the occasion for a general exchange about social mobility or the lack of it. This is a question laser-like focused on the resignation of the board of the Social Mobility Commission and will be treated as such by the Chair. I want it to run for no longer than half an hour, not because it is not important—it is extremely important—but because there are eight hours of protected business, which is also extremely important, and I have to balance these considerations, so self-discipline is required.

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[Mr Goodwill]

I do not recognise the right hon. Gentleman’s characterisation that we have done nothing to address social mobility. Disadvantaged children are 43% more likely to go to university than in 2009. Our two-year-olds childcare offer has a 71% take-up compared with 58% in 2015. Some 1.9 million more children go to outstanding schools than in 2010, and there are more teachers in schools than ever before. We have made progress in a number of areas, including our offer of 30 hours of free childcare, which helps working families to cope with the cost of childcare while they juggle childcare and work at the same time.

I reaffirm the fact that social mobility remains a priority of the Government. I am fully committed to that, as are the Secretary of State and the Prime Minister. The right hon. Gentleman mentioned geographical spread. If he reads the report, he will see that the spread is patchy, with parts of London demonstrating a real need for more assistance, and more needing to be done in places such as the east and west midlands. That is precisely why we have designated the 12 opportunity areas in the places where we most need to address the situation for children in the early years, with regard to education, the aspiration to get into employment and get good qualifications and the most difficult nut to crack—the home learning environment. Many young children are starting nursery provision without the basic skills that many other children from better-off backgrounds have.

I want to make it clear that, although Brexit is an important priority for this Government, we can walk and chew gum at the same time. We are absolutely committed to ensuring that we continue the process of improving social mobility for everyone in the country.

[Mr Speaker]

May I remind the House of what I said fewer than 10 minutes ago? The question is about the resignation of the board, so questions should be about that matter; it is not unreasonable to hope that the same might also be said of answers.

[Robert Halfon (Harlow) (Con)]

Many people were inspired by what the Prime Minister said on the steps of Downing Street when she took office. Will my hon. Friend look into using this opportunity to reform the Social Mobility Commission to create a social justice commission at the heart of Downing Street to assess the impact of every bit of domestic legislation on social justice?

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[Mims Davies (Eastleigh) (Con)]

I was pleased to hear from the Minister about the home learning environment, alongside our good schools, giving true opportunity to our children. On the Government side of the House, we want our children to go as far as their talents will take them. Is this not an opportunity for a renewal?

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I remind hon. Members again that the resignation of the board is the matter of which we are treating.

[Mr Goodwill]

I will comment briefly. The home learning environment is one of the toughest nuts to crack. Many children start their early education without the basic skills that they need. Much of that is due to the fact that they are not read to, that televisions may not be turned off and that they are not communicated with. That is a real challenge, and I hope that the new commission will give us pointers on how we can continue to address it.

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[Mr Goodwill]

As I understand it, that was not one of the suggestions that Alan Milburn made as he was leaving.

[Mr Speaker]

Order. That question, although delivered with the hon. Gentleman’s customary lucidity, also suffered from the disadvantage of being utterly irrelevant to the question of the resignation of the board. Perhaps we can return to the matter at hand.

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Mr Speaker]

Let us take a good, honest, reliable citizen—there are so many to choose from on both sides. I call Peter Kyle.

[Peter Kyle (Hove) (Lab)]

Thank you, Mr Speaker—that is an introduction I will struggle to live up to.

Alan Milburn has said that he resigned because of dysfunction in the Government and the lack of implementation. The Minister’s response gives the impression that he resigned because all the work was already done. Once again, can the Minister give us a clear explanation: why did the board resign, from his perspective?

[Mr Goodwill]

Mr Milburn was told on 22 November that, although the post would be readvertised, he would not be expected to apply. On the resignation, as the hon. Gentleman described it, we were looking to refresh the board and bring some new blood in. I hope that that will give us a good opportunity to improve the functioning of the board. As I say, that is no personal reflection on Alan Milburn or the work he has done—he has been very good over the five years he has done this job. He has held us to account and held our feet to the fire, as the commission was designed to do.

[Mr Speaker]

I was gently teasing the hon. Member for Hove (Peter Kyle) but, needless to say, all Members are honest—that goes without saying.

[Lucy Frazer (South East Cambridgeshire) (Con)]

Reports produced by the Social Mobility Foundation show that in the past year, east Cambridgeshire has gone up 70 places. While there is still more work to do, does the Minister think that the commission should be proud of this progress?

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[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I am sorry, but I am going to conclude at this point. I know only a few Members are left to ask questions, but there will be many opportunities fully to air this matter. Looking at the perspicacious Members who were standing, I am quite sure that even if I had not said that, they would anyway have found such opportunities.