Get Britain Working: Reforming Jobcentres
Wednesday 11 June 2025,
09.30am, Committee Room 6
Employment Minister will be questioned on the
Government's reforms of Jobcentres that could affect millions of
service users.
Cross-party MPs on the Work and Pensions Committee will
scrutinise proposals to merge the National Careers Service with
Jobcentre Plus announced last year but little further detail has
since been published. The aim is to refocus the Jobcentre more on
its traditional task of finding people suitable and sustainable
employment rather than monitoring claimants' benefits
conditionality and sanctioning people.
Recently, the Employment Minister outlined a fresh attitude to
finding employment, stating that the service will no longer be
pushing people into any job and would instead focus on building
careers. However, elsewhere the Government has said that
conditionality will remain part of the regime.
But how does the Government propose balancing the requirements of
conditionality with the need for work coaches to focus more on
work and training in the 10 minutes that they have with
customers? The Committee will question the Minister on whether
there will be any changes to the sanctions regime, the centrality
of the principle of ‘good work', and what the reforms will mean
for claimants, work coaches, and prospective employers.
Witnesses
Panel from 09.30:
-
MP, Minister for
Employment, Department for Work and Pensions;
- Ed Lidington, Director, Labour Market Strategy, Policy and
Analysis;
- David Barrow, Director, Jobs and Career's Service.
ENDS
Notes to editors:
