Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the Social Mobility Commission’s proposal to set up a dedicated government unit to co-ordinate action and ensure the recommendations of the commission are delivered.

We welcome the Social Mobility Commission’s annual report, which recognises progress in areas such as improving life chances for people, boosting mental health support for young people, and keeping disadvantaged pupils in education for longer.

On the specific recommendation of establishing a social mobility unit, we do not believe creating another government body is the solution – as it risks adding bureaucracy and distracting from addressing the issues at hand.

Government’s policy to level up opportunity across the country is already championed across Whitehall and most government departments have a part to play. The new Equality Hub in the Cabinet Office, comprising the Government Equalities Office, the Race Disparity Unit and the Disability Unit, will be broadening their work to look more widely at barriers to opportunity and working across government to support delivery on this agenda.