Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Barry Gardiner and Steve Webb

Monday 1st September 2014 Commons Chamber

[Steve Webb]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his supportive comments. Focusing on automatic enrolment, I am pleased to tell him that we aim to protect as many members of automatic enrolment qualifying schemes as possible, regardless of when they started contributing. From April 2015, the cap will therefore apply both to members of schemes newly set up for automatic enrolment and existing qualifying schemes for auto-enrolment.

[Barry Gardiner (Brent North) (Lab)]

How concerned is the Minister about savers who want to take advantage of new pension flexibilities being subject to huge penalties in exiting their scheme? What action is he taking to ensure that that cannot happen?

[Steve Webb]

The hon. Gentleman raises an important point. A review of legacy pension schemes is under way, under the auspices of the Association of British Insurers, and the issue of excessive exit fees is part of it. In most cases, the terms of schemes will allow people to access their budget flexibilities, but there may be some where the contract and scheme rules impose a charge, and that is a contract that people have entered into.

Quality Workplace Pensions

Debate between Barry Gardiner and Steve Webb

Thursday 27th March 2014 Commons Chamber

[Steve Webb]

I agree. I have already met the chair of the new audit committee, and one of my senior officials serves on it. This work is now under way. Providers are being asked for data. That represents a significant cost to them, but we need those data. The deadline for that work is the end of this year. I have talked about some measures being taken years down the track, but this work will be completed this year. We will not just sit and wait until a letter arrives on my desk on Christmas day, or whatever. We are keeping close to the review, and as we learn from it and decide what action we can take, we will do so as soon as possible.

[Barry Gardiner (Brent North) (Lab)]

The Minister spoke of the “bold” pension proposals in last week’s Budget. Now that the Chancellor has allowed people to cash in their pension pot instead of purchasing an annuity, can the Minister confirm that, under his Department’s rules on care costs, local authorities will now be able to insist that they do cash them in, thereby pushing them over the threshold where they have to contribute to their own care costs?

[Steve Webb]

The hon. Gentleman raises an important point, which is that these changes have a number of knock-on effects within our Department and the Department of Health. Of course, we will make sure that the spirit of the Chancellor’s announcement is carefully reflected in the way Departments carry on. These flexibilities do not come in for another year, so we still have time to work through detail of the sort that he properly raises.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Barry Gardiner and Steve Webb

Monday 10th January 2011 Commons Chamber

[Barry Gardiner (Brent North) (Lab)]

T7. The Government’s ethnic minority impact assessment of the housing benefit changes states that it is not possible, because of a lack of data, to make a proper assessment. In my constituency, it is estimated that 8,500 people will be displaced. On the register, 64% of claimants are from ethnic minority backgrounds. That rises to 83% and 84% for the most vulnerable groups of those in temporary accommodation and those in houses of more than four people. Will the Government assure me that they will do what they said they might do and conduct further research into the disproportionate impact that the changes will have on ethnic minorities?

[The Minister of State, Department for Work and Pensions (Steve Webb)]

I do not recognise the estimate of 8,500 displaced families. We have made changes to the proposals so that the changes to housing benefit will be phased in and existing tenants will have nine months’ protection starting from the anniversary of their claim, with the result that local authorities will have time to manage the transition and that there will be more direct payments to landlords, so we will be able to negotiate rents down. We will of course monitor the impact of the changes as they go on, but 8,500 displaced families is not a number that we recognise.