Oral Answers to Questions Debate

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Department: Cabinet Office

Oral Answers to Questions

Chris Kelly Excerpts
Wednesday 25th January 2012

(12 years, 3 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton Portrait The Prime Minister
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Instead of just reading the press release, the hon. Gentleman should read the NAO report, which praises the Government for introducing a scheme in such a short time. The basic point that the NAO is making is that the Work programme is not putting taxpayers’ money at risk but putting the providers at risk, and that is a different way of doing things. It is about payment by results, getting better performance and value for money—things that his Government never provided.

Chris Kelly Portrait Chris Kelly (Dudley South) (Con)
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Q11. As my hon. Friends have said earlier, many of my constituents, like theirs, work extremely hard for modest salaries. Given that many people think that the benefit cap should be set lower than £26,000, does my right hon. Friend agree that the Opposition are completely out of touch by voting to make it higher?

Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton Portrait The Prime Minister
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My hon. Friend makes a good point. Let me remind the Leader of the Opposition what he said at the beginning of this year. On the “Today” programme, he said:

“I’m not against the cap.”

If he is not against the cap, why could he not get his Labour peers to vote for the cap in the House of Lords? What is he—weak, incompetent, or both?