Speeches by Milne.

“I agree that you need to think about the purpose, but the bill at the end is not irrelevant.”

“So the answer is no?”

“I think you have partially answered this question, but what are the arguments for targeting support at defined groups such as carers and people with long-term health conditions or disability, as opposed to increasing the standard rate for everyone on UC aged 66 and above?”

“Your decision to provide indexation on pre-’97 benefits for FAS and PPF members from January 2027 is very welcome, but the lack of any retrospectivity means that the indexation will apply only to a fraction of their original entitlement. Would you continue to consider the case for a one-off uplift to at least partially…”

“The Government want to cut funding for level 7 apprenticeships and redirect resources to younger groups, but bodies such as the Royal Institute of British Architects tell me that young people are unlikely to enter professional training in the construction sector, because funding will be withdrawn at the later, more exp…”

“T10. My constituent Lucinda Ritchie is a disabled woman with full mental capacity. Until recently, she was living in her own home in Horsham, with NHS support. Against her express wishes, she has been moved into a nursing home an hour away from her family, and denied the right to return. Will the Minister look into Luc…”

“In the last 20 years, traffic on locally managed major roads has fallen by around 5%, yet damage has never been worse. Why? Because rural routes are carrying traffic they were never designed for. Heavy goods vehicles are increasingly using villages such as Cowfold, Colgate and Lower Beeding in my constituency as rat ru…”

“What actions might be most effective in preventing young people from becoming NEET in the first place? Do you have the tools and resources to identify them in advance? If not, what might you look to see?”

“Thank you. And Tim in construction?”

“Thank you. Chris, from the point of view of your members, any comments?”

“Now my final question, if I can just throw it open generally for swift answers if possible. As part of the jobs guarantee, the Government are offering grants of up to £2,650 per participant to cover wraparound costs. Do you think that is enough? Is there any other sort of form of support that you think would be appropr…”

“Last year saw the first fall in Access to Work approvals in more than a decade, including a 16% drop in approvals for aids and equipment, despite the alleged surge in disability claims overall. That suggests that, behind the scenes, the Government have instructed the DWP to get tougher on approval criteria, but without…”

“A key part of the Government’s response to the problem of youth unemployment is the jobs guarantee. How attractive do you think that is to employers? Kate, I know you referred to it earlier.”

“T7. Even while sitting here, I have had word from a constituent whose heating oil cost has risen, in one go, to 129.9p plus VAT per litre. I recognise that the Chancellor has been pressed by a number of Members on this. Can she assure us of immediate action, as vulnerable residents are in immediate crisis?”

“A recent report from Adzuna, a large job search agency, shows youth unemployment at an 11-year high and vacancies plummeting. Jobseekers urgently need the new “jobcentre in your pocket” digital service. Given that current timeframes suggest that it will not be ready until 2028, will the Secretary of State assure us tha…”

“Thank you. They are very big differences; it is very interesting. Do you think there are any changes to carer’s benefits that we could make that would help prevent worsening health outcomes?”

“Thank you very much.”

“There are lots of different benefits out there. They do different jobs, they have different rules and they interact in quite complicated ways. Do you have any suggestions on how we might improve that or make it easier for the consumer? I don’t know who wants to come in.”

“Carers’ organisations have also raised concerns about the potential impact of PIP reforms on people in receipt of carer’s benefits, that one carer’s allowance depends on a PIP award. What solutions do you think DWP could use to address that problem? Who would like to take that?”

“A very important point.”