Welfare Reform

Virendra Sharma Excerpts

Thursday 11th November 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Duncan Smith]

A variety of programmes affect some of those groups, and the hon. Gentleman will know that extra money has been refocused on early years. The hon. Member for Nottingham North (Mr Allen) and the right hon. Member for Birkenhead (Mr Field) are producing reports on this. We are looking at dealing with those areas separately. If the take-up improves, which it will because it will be automatic, it will directly affect a significant number of people. We genuinely believe that even in a static state about 350,000 children will be lifted out of poverty. That has to be a pretty good start compared with what happened before.

[Mr Virendra Sharma (Ealing, Southall) (Lab)]

The Secretary of State said that carers will be able to adjust their working patterns according to their own time scales and choose their own flexible hours. How will he ensure that employers agree to that according to the carers’ needs, rather than the employers’ needs?

[Mr Duncan Smith]

The point about this system is that because it does not say that people can work for 16 hours—or whatever it is—they can go back into work. Because work pays in every hour they take, they will be able to look at 10 or 15-hour jobs—or whatever—that may be available. For each one, they can make an adjustment and say, “Well, that would suit me. I’d be able to take that,” whereas before—[Interruption.] Employers will have to advertise those jobs, because they will be available now and people can do the work. The point that I am making is that people can take those jobs now because they pay, whereas before it would not have paid them to work those hours.