MS, Cabinet Secretary for Social
Justice, Trefnydd and Chief Whip: I represented the Welsh
Government at the inaugural meeting of the 4 Nations
Inter-Ministerial Group (IMG) on Work and Pensions on 26 June.
This was chaired by , Minister for
Transformation for DWP, UK Government. This inaugural meeting
provided an opportunity for Ministers from the UK Government,
Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland
Executive to get together for the first time to talk about
matters of mutual interest in the fields of employment support,
disability, social security, child maintenance and pensions.
The terms of reference were formally agreed at the start of the
meeting and it is anticipated they will be published on the
dedicated Intergovernmental
Relations page of the UK Government website.
Discussion focussed on the Pathways to Work green paper and the
Get Britain Working white paper. I raised concerns on the
potential for a disproportionate impact of the proposed changes
to Personal Independence Payment eligibility criteria in Wales
and the importance of listening to the individuals who this will
affect. There was agreement on continued engagement on this
matter across all four nations.
With regards to employment support, I highlighted the importance
of ensuring alignment with existing programmes noting the
successes of our community employability support and our Young
Person's Guarantee in gaining trust from people in Wales.
I also raised the need to ensure we communicate regularly to
share lessons learnt and the significance of timely and accurate
data sharing which will enable us to achieve the shared goal of
supporting more people into employment.
A communiqué is
expected to be published on the UK Government's website in the
near future.
Subsequent to the IMG meeting, on 1 July the DWP Minister for
Social Security and Disability confirmed that Clause 5 would be
withdrawn from the Universal Credit and Personal Independence
Payment Bill meaning that any changes to the eligibility criteria
for PIP would be considered following the completion of the PIP
review.
