Clause 18
Welfare Reform Bill
6:00 pm
Danny Alexander (Shadow Minister and Disability Spokesperson, Work & Pensions; Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey, Liberal Democrat)
I beg to move amendment No. 45, in clause 18, page 15, line 5, leave out ‘24’ and insert ‘60’.
I do not have a great deal to say about the amendment. It is designed simply to probe the Government’s intentions in respect of pilot schemes. I would like the Under-Secretary of State to explain her thinking on the amount of time to be allowed for those schemes. The Bill as drafted allows regulations for pilots not to exceed a specific period of 24 months. Will the hon. Lady spell out why she thinks that two years is the right period for a pilot, given that there is evidence that longer pilot schemes allow more time for the evaluation and understanding of their outcomes?
With those extremely brief words, I look forward to the Under-Secretary’s response.