Wednesday 18 November
2026, 09.30, Committee Room 6
The Work and Pensions Committee will take evidence from expert
witnesses Professor Dan Finn and Ben Paxton on the benefits and
drawbacks of the government's proposals to devolve employment
support.
During the session, MPs will quiz Finn and Paxton on whether
Strategic Authorities have the resources and capacity to
successfully design and deliver employment support at the local
level, while looking at lessons from examples abroad.
The UK remains relatively centralised by international standards,
but the government is proposing that local government takes on
more responsibility for designing and delivering employment
support to meet local needs.
While a small but increasing proportion of employment support
programmes are being delivered with local input, such as Connect
to Work and WorkWell, the government's plans represent a
significant shift in responsibility and accountability.
Will local governments have the resources needed to take on this
role? What role should Whitehall play in overseeing standards?
Will a more localised approach produce better results, or will
the UK end up with a post-code lottery of support? These
questions and more are likely to be explored in the session, the
first of the committee's local delivery of
employment support inquiry.
Witnesses
From 09.30
- Professor Dan Finn, Emeritus Professor of Social Inclusion,
University of Portsmouth;
- Ben Paxton, Senior Researcher, Institute for Government.
