Social Mobility Commission

Debate between Vince Cable and Robert Goodwill

Monday 4th December 2017 Commons Chamber

[Sir Vince Cable (Twickenham) (LD)]

(Urgent Question): To ask the Minister for Children and Families if he will make a statement on the resignation of the board of the Social Mobility Commission.

[The Minister for Children and Families (Mr Robert Goodwill)]

Thank you, Mr Speaker, for allowing me to take this urgent question, which gives us an opportunity to underline our commitment to improving social mobility in our country.

I am extremely grateful to Alan Milburn for his work as chair of the Social Mobility Commission over the past five years. We had already told him that we planned to appoint a new chair. We will hold an open application process for that role to ensure that we continue to build on this important work and that the foundation laid by Alan and his team can be built on.

Tackling social mobility is the Department’s priority. We are driving opportunity through the whole education system. We have made real progress in recent years. The attainment gap between disadvantaged children at the end of reception has narrowed, and the proportion of eligible disadvantaged two-year-olds benefiting from funded childcare has risen from 58% in 2015 to 71% in 2017. We are putting more money into the early years than ever before, spending a record £6 billion a year on childcare and early education support by 2019-20. We are also increasing the number of good school places, with 1.9 million more children in good or outstanding schools than in 2010. There are over 15,500 more teachers in state-funded schools in England than in 2010. The £140 million strategic school improvement fund will target resources to support school performance and pupil attainment at the schools that need it most.

The attainment gap, as highlighted by the commission, between disadvantaged pupils and their peers has narrowed since we introduced the pupil premium—now worth around £2.5 billion a year—in 2011. That is a coalition policy that we continue to embrace.

We know that there is more to do and we are focusing on areas of the country with the greatest challenges and the fewest opportunities, including £72 million in the 12 opportunity areas. Plans for the first six areas were published on 9 October 2017 and we will publish plans for the second six areas early in November.

The outgoing chair of the Social Mobility Commission welcomed the launch of the opportunity area programme and the Government’s commitment to addressing disadvantage, which remains a priority for the Government.

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[Sir Vince Cable]

I do not think that the Conservatives have ever claimed to be a party of equality, but they have always claimed to be a party of equality of opportunity—in other words, social mobility. When the Prime Minister took office, her first speech set out very clearly the objective to do everything to help everybody, whatever their background, to go as far as their talents will take them. What does the resignation of the commission tell us about the Government’s success in achieving that objective? The chairman of the commission was very pointed. He said that the worst possible position in politics

“is to set out a proposition that you’re going to heal social divisions and then do nothing about it.”

It would be very difficult to spin the resignation of the commission in partisan terms, because Alan Milburn has conscientiously served Labour, coalition and Conservative Governments. Among the commissioners who have resigned with him, one was a highly respected former Conservative Secretary of State for Education.

I have a specific question for the Minister about the most recent of the commission’s reports, to which he will no doubt be able to respond. Why have only five of the 65 social mobility coldspots—the areas with the least social mobility, everywhere from west Somerset to east midlands cities—been covered by the various growth deals negotiated by the Government? The report makes the point that geographical division in Britain is now more extreme than in any other country in Europe, so will the Government consider reinstating the regional growth fund, which played an important role in addressing that problem during the coalition? As the barriers to social mobility often rest in incentives to work, will the Minister explain how the £3 billion cut to the work allowance will affect people’s willingness to work once they are in low-income employment?

The commission is even-handed and praises the Secretary of State for Education for her commitment. But what does it say about the Government’s commitment when the most committed and conscientious member of the Cabinet is presiding over a 60% cut in apprenticeships, which blocks social mobility through vocational education, and a 6% cut real cut in schools spending over the next five years?

Does the Minister agree with the chair of the commission’s point that Brexit is now sucking the life out of Government, and that the biggest casualties of Brexit—particularly the extreme Brexit of withdrawing from the single market and the customs union—will be the 60 of the 65 social mobility coldspots that voted for Brexit?

[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.