Welfare Reform Bill

Given the time constraints we are under, I will try not to repeat anything that has already been said, but I want to support my hon. Friend the Member for Aberdeen, South (Miss Begg) in her campaign in respect of people with sight disabilities. I shall focus my remarks on the difficulties that mothers in particular face in getting into work, particularly in relation to child care. I have thought long and hard about the requirement on mothers to take part in work-related activity. This brings us back again to the difficulty of balancing work and caring responsibilities. Although much has been done in introducing family-friendly policies and extending child care, there is still a long way to go. In considering these matters, we need only look at the experiences of mothers already in the work force. It is a myth that women staying at home was the norm: working-class women have always worked, through financial necessity. lf it was difficult to sustain a household on one wage in the past, it is even more difficult today. There have been massive changes, which need to be taken into account—not only the rising numbers of children brought up in lone-parent families, but the necessity of young mothers to work nowadays in order to pay mortgages, service debts and provide a reasonable standard of living in line with today's consumer society. Historically, women have been encouraged to work, not for their own good but because the economy needed them. What little child care there has been was withdrawn when there were fewer jobs available, when men were regarded as having first call on the work which was available so as to provide the family wage. We are already hearing concerns that in this economic downturn women will be disproportionately affected, so it is doubly important that child care is expanded and not contracted, and that long-term help is provided to enable mothers to join the work force. Of course, in addition to all that, there has been a very strong desire by women themselves to work for their own personal development, and to do so on equal terms with men and for equal pay. Again, we still have a very long way to go on that. I wonder how many Members of this House have ever brought up children while living on benefit. I do not mean living on benefit for a week for a TV documentary—I mean for real. It is a stressful, demoralising experience and it is certainly not to be recommended as a long-term situation. That prompts the question of what someone needs to get into work and what can make a difference. As I say, I have thought long and hard, and not only about the principle of working. I think it is useful to consider how things have changed since my time as a young mother in the 1970s and the experience of my daughters and their generation today. There are four things that I wish to suggest, the first of which relates to confidence. I was brought up with a strong work ethic and there was a very obvious stigma attached to those who did not work and, for that matter, to lone parents. Many mothers today who have been brought up in poverty themselves, especially if they are on their own, do not have the confidence or family experience to engender confidence, and they need very extensive support to have a chance. I spoke recently to a local organisation that supports parents, and I have found that in many cases, it can take four months of regular engagement before these mothers will even go over the door to join a group, far less look for work. A build-up of support is required and how that is approached is crucial. Where are the resources coming from to develop this level of support in relation to Jobcentre Plus? Secondly, the support of the extended family is needed, but it is not always available in the way that it has been in the past—many grandparents are working themselves and cannot afford to babysit free of charge. That should be recognised, as many mothers would prefer to have care provided by their relatives, if only they could access child care tax credits or some other means. I welcome the early-day motion tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Aberdeen, South that seeks to credit in national insurance the unpaid contribution of grandparents, who save society a fortune by providing free child care—that would be a good starting point. The third thing that is crucial is the availability of affordable child care. Back in the '70s, I was in a very fortunate position: we had a Labour Government, and I was able to secure a state nursery place at a nominal cost to allow me to go to college. By the time I had my second child, 10 years later, people could not get a nursery place in Ayr for love nor money, unless they had a social worker. The introduction of universal nursery provision has helped a great deal, but some areas do not have wraparound care, so full-time care comes solely from the private sector. My own daughter has just had a baby and she will be back at work by the time her daughter is six months old. Obviously, I am not one of the grannies who is available to offer child care, even if she could afford me. The going rate for child care is £35 per day and she reckons that she will be paying more than £1,000 per month for her two children—it would be a lot more if she had more than one child under five. When I look around, I see that the majority of mothers do go back to work when their children are relatively young, as has always been the case; it has always been only the minority who could afford to choose to stay at home. So there is no inherent reason why people on benefits should not work. Many wish to do so, but, crucially, they need the right type of support to make child care affordable. Any conditionality must take that into account, and I seek assurances from the Secretary of State that no one will be regarded as breaching the rules because they cannot get access to child care. In Scotland, the statutory duty on local authorities to secure sufficient child care for parents who work does not apply. The Wise Group has reported that in Glasgow there is a lack of suitable places for parents wanting to work. It is probably harder today than it has ever been to raise children, and I believe that all parents could benefit from some parenting support at some time. At the moment, this is, in the main, down to voluntary organisations, many of which are strapped for cash. Certainly in Scotland there are widespread financial difficulties as councils cut back on funding, and that is affecting organisations that provide support to parents. In conclusion, I wish briefly to mention women who have suffered domestic violence. I am very concerned that they will be asked to take part in work-related activity as soon as they leave a violent partner, and I ask the Secretary of State to ensure that that does not happen.