Asked by: Baroness Stedman-Scott (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assets will count towards the £25 billion requirement for a Main Scale Default Arrangement under the Pension Schemes Bill; and whether assets held in default funds only, or across all scheme investments, will be included.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government set out its intended approach concerning the Main Scale Default Arrangements (MSDA) in the May 2025 consultation response and final report of the Pensions Investment Review. We have also recently published Pension Schemes Bill: Scale and Consolidation on Gov.UK to give an overview of the government’s direction of travel ahead of detailed consultation on regulations.
As outlined in the final report of the Review, key benefits of scale are realised at the level on which strategic decisions on investment are made. This is generally at an ‘arrangement’ level.
To meet the scale requirement, a provider must demonstrate that it holds assets of at least £25 billion in their MSDA.
These assets may be counted from a number of connected schemes offered by a single provider, but they must all be managed under a common investment strategy.
Further details will be set out in regulations following formal consultation.
Asked by: Baroness Stedman-Scott (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the £25 billion Main Scale Default Arrangement requirement will be assessed at the level of the scheme, individual default arrangements, or sections within a scheme.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government set out its intended approach concerning the Main Scale Default Arrangements (MSDA) in the May 2025 consultation response and final report of the Pensions Investment Review. We have also recently published Pension Schemes Bill: Scale and Consolidation on Gov.UK to give an overview of the government’s direction of travel ahead of detailed consultation on regulations.
As outlined in the final report of the Review, key benefits of scale are realised at the level on which strategic decisions on investment are made. This is generally at an ‘arrangement’ level.
To meet the scale requirement, a provider must demonstrate that it holds assets of at least £25 billion in their MSDA.
These assets may be counted from a number of connected schemes offered by a single provider, but they must all be managed under a common investment strategy.
Further details will be set out in regulations following formal consultation.
Asked by: Baroness Stedman-Scott (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what issues the consultation on the proposed scale test will consider, including whether it will examine (1) the definition of a Main Scale Default Arrangement, (2) how assets will be counted towards the threshold, and (3) the pathways available for schemes to reach scale.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government has committed to publish an update to the June 2025 ‘Workplace pensions: a roadmap’. This will include timelines for consultation on the scale measures, which will cover the issues raised amongst others.
Asked by: Baroness Stedman-Scott (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government how long the consultation on the proposed scale test for defined contribution schemes will run; and when they expect the consultation process to conclude.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government has committed to publish an update to the June 2025 ‘Workplace pensions: a roadmap’. This will include timelines for consultation on the scale measures, which will cover the issues raised amongst others.
Asked by: Baroness Stedman-Scott (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to publish the formal consultation on the proposed scale test for defined contribution pension schemes.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government has committed to publish an update to the June 2025 ‘Workplace pensions: a roadmap’. This will include timelines for consultation on the scale measures, which will cover the issues raised amongst others.
Asked by: Baroness Lister of Burtersett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many families would be removed from the benefit cap if child benefit were not included in it; and what would be the cost.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department does not hold this data.
Asked by: Baroness Whitaker (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to align apprenticeships for 16–18-year-olds with those for people aged 19 and above by removing the requirement to achieve English and maths qualifications.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government is committed to high standards of English and maths and funds apprentices aged 16-18 at the start of their training to achieve English and maths qualifications, if they do not already hold suitable equivalent qualifications, in order to complete their apprenticeship.
This is consistent with our expectation that all young people should have a further meaningful opportunity to secure English and maths qualifications post-16, where they do not already hold them. This can be a GCSE or functional skills qualification.
Further flexibility is in place for apprentices with a learning difficulty and/or disability where there is evidence this is likely to be a barrier to them completing their apprenticeship. In these cases, they are able to achieve an entry level 3 functional skills qualification to complete. Since August 2024, this flexibility has been available to apprentices with a learning difficulty and/or disability but without an Education Health and Care Plan.
As with all apprenticeship policies, we continue to monitor the impact of the English and maths requirements, to ensure they are striking the right balance.
Asked by: Connor Naismith (Labour - Crewe and Nantwich)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of recent trends in the level of youth inactivity; and what steps he is taking to increase participation in education, employment and training among young people.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
This Government will not leave an entire generation of young people behind. For many years our young people have not had the opportunity and support they deserve. Under the last government, between 2021 and 2024, the number of young people not in education, employment or training increased by 250,000. The latest figures show the proportion of 16-24 year-olds that are not in employment, education or training (NEET) is 12.8% (1 in 8), up 0.1% points on the quarter and down 0.4% points on the year.
This Government has recently announced a further £1 billion investment in young people, taking the total investment to £2.5 billion over the next three years though the Youth Guarantee and additional investment in the Growth and Skills Levy. This investment will support almost one million young people and create up to 500,000 opportunities to earn and learn.
This includes the delivery of eight Youth Guarantee Trailblazers in England, expansion of Youth Hubs to more than 360 areas across Great Britain and introduction of a new Youth Guarantee Gateway in Jobcentres. The Gateway will provide 16-24-year-olds on Universal Credit a dedicated session and follow-up support to help them move into work, training or education.
This investment will also create around 300,000 more opportunities to gain workplace experience and training, including up to 150,000 work experience placements and up to 145,000 employer designed training opportunities, such as Sector based Work Academy Programmes, which offer participants a guaranteed job interview at the end.
In addition, the Government is taking action to support employers to recruit and train young people, helping to unlock up to 200,000 more employment opportunities. This includes a new £3,000 Youth Jobs Grant for employers who hire 18–24-year-olds who have been on Universal Credit for over six months, a new £2,000 apprenticeship incentive for small and medium sized employers hiring 16–24-year-old, and the Jobs Guarantee scheme, providing long-term unemployed 18–24-year-olds with a fully funded six month job.
The Government will also prioritise prevention, building on measures announced in the Skills White Paper. The Government will improve support in schools, monitor attendance, increase access to work experience and work with local authorities to pilot auto-enrolling young people in further education, if needed.
Together these measures demonstrate the Government’s commitment to backing young people, supporting employers, and working with partners across Great Britain to create clear pathways into employment and education for young people.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to his Department’s press release entitled Major employment drive to help unlock 200,000 new jobs and apprenticeships for next generation, published on 16 March 2026, what estimate he has made of the proportion of young people supported by the programme who will remain in employment 12 months after starting work.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Youth Jobs Grant is specifically targeted at young people because of the risk of lifelong scarring impacts of extended unemployment at a young age and to support the Government’s commitment to reducing the number of young people not in education, employment or training.
The Youth Jobs Grant is designed to help employers with the early costs of hiring eligible young people. The first payment will not be made until after we’ve had confirmation through other sources that the young person has been employed, and the final payment will not be made until after several months of employment to encourage retention. As with all our employment programmes, we will monitor delivery to ensure the Grant is being used as intended, which is to expand opportunities for young people who need help to enter the labour market.
We estimate there are 200,000 young people eligible for the Youth Jobs Grant now, and we expect to support 60,000 young people with this over three years. We are also expanding the Jobs Guarantee to a wider age range, from 18-21 to 18-24, to create more than 35,000 extra subsidised jobs. This brings the total to be supported through the scheme to over 90,000 in the next three years.
The Youth Jobs Grant is available to employers in all sectors across Great Britain. The roles supported will depend on employers’ hiring needs rather than sector specific targets. We expect more take up in sectors that traditionally recruit young people, such as retail, hospitality, health and social care, logistics and construction, alongside opportunities in growth sectors including digital, engineering and green technologies.
The purpose of the Grant is to help young people into work by reducing the upfront costs of hiring, and it has been designed using evidence from previous schemes in the UK and wider international practice. As with all new programmes, we will monitor delivery and evaluate outcomes, including employment sustainment, once the scheme is in operation.
Further practical details on how employers will claim the Grant will be set out in guidance ahead of the scheme launching.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to his Department’s press release entitled Major employment drive to help unlock 200,000 new jobs and apprenticeships for next generation, published on 16 March 2026, what analysis his Department has undertaken of the sectors most likely to create jobs under the youth employment drive.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Youth Jobs Grant is specifically targeted at young people because of the risk of lifelong scarring impacts of extended unemployment at a young age and to support the Government’s commitment to reducing the number of young people not in education, employment or training.
The Youth Jobs Grant is designed to help employers with the early costs of hiring eligible young people. The first payment will not be made until after we’ve had confirmation through other sources that the young person has been employed, and the final payment will not be made until after several months of employment to encourage retention. As with all our employment programmes, we will monitor delivery to ensure the Grant is being used as intended, which is to expand opportunities for young people who need help to enter the labour market.
We estimate there are 200,000 young people eligible for the Youth Jobs Grant now, and we expect to support 60,000 young people with this over three years. We are also expanding the Jobs Guarantee to a wider age range, from 18-21 to 18-24, to create more than 35,000 extra subsidised jobs. This brings the total to be supported through the scheme to over 90,000 in the next three years.
The Youth Jobs Grant is available to employers in all sectors across Great Britain. The roles supported will depend on employers’ hiring needs rather than sector specific targets. We expect more take up in sectors that traditionally recruit young people, such as retail, hospitality, health and social care, logistics and construction, alongside opportunities in growth sectors including digital, engineering and green technologies.
The purpose of the Grant is to help young people into work by reducing the upfront costs of hiring, and it has been designed using evidence from previous schemes in the UK and wider international practice. As with all new programmes, we will monitor delivery and evaluate outcomes, including employment sustainment, once the scheme is in operation.
Further practical details on how employers will claim the Grant will be set out in guidance ahead of the scheme launching.