Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Steve Webb and John Pugh

Monday 9th March 2015 Commons Chamber

[John Pugh (Southport) (LD)]

T6. Will the Minister tell the House how the outlook for women and their pensions has improved since 2010?

[The Minister for Pensions (Steve Webb)]

I am very happy to brief my hon. Friend. Tackling the poorer pension outcomes for women has been a long-term priority for him and for me. Our reformed state pension will come in during 2016 and will deliver a fairer pension for women. Millions of women have been automatically enrolled and so will have a pension of their own, on top of a decent state pension—the difference, dare I say it, that a Liberal Democrat Pensions Minister makes.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Steve Webb and John Pugh

Monday 8th December 2014 Commons Chamber

[John Pugh (Southport) (LD)]

3. What his policy is on the freezing of pensions of British nationals living abroad; and if he will make a statement.

[The Minister for Pensions (Steve Webb)]

The policy of the Government on the uprating of UK state pensions paid to people living overseas is the same as that of successive post-war Governments—namely, to uprate such pensions where we are legally required to do so under the terms of EU law or a bilateral social security agreement.

[John Pugh]

I thank the Minister for that, I think, but surely there are enough anomalies and inconsistencies in the system to warrant a wholesale review. British pensions should not be country-dependent.

[Steve Webb]

I agree with my hon. Friend in the sense that if one were designing a system from scratch, one would not necessarily design the one that we have arrived at over the course of 50 years. He will be aware, however, that paying for this indexation would cost some half a billion pounds a year, and I do not believe that any party in this House has committed to such an increase in public spending.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Steve Webb and John Pugh

Monday 22nd November 2010 Commons Chamber

[Steve Webb]

On the contrary. The Labour party manifesto said that people who were in work should not be in worse accommodation than people who are out of work. That implies the 30th percentile change, and that is what we have implemented.

[Dr John Pugh (Southport) (LD)]

What are the Government doing to prevent hardened drug addicts with consequent mental health issues claiming DLA in the normal way, which goes straight into their veins and up their noses? What are the Government doing to improve the situation and stop this waste of public money?