§ Mr. PondTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will carry out an assessment of the impact of his Department's current policies on the(a) income, (b) employment opportunities and (c) living standards, of the poorest 30 per cent. of the population. [23336]
§ Mr. Alan HowarthThe best way of improving the living standards of most people at the bottom of the income distribution is to help them into work, and we are implementing a range of policies under the New Deal to achieve this aim.
We continually evaluate our policies using a variety of methods. The success of New Deal will be assessed by carrying out a wide-ranging programme of evaluation. The evaluation will consider the impact of New Deal on the labour market, the impact on individuals, employers, and numbers on welfare, plus the impact on wider economic and social issues, e.g. social exclusion, the voluntary sector, the environment and criminality.
We have also established a Social Exclusion Unit to help co-ordinate action across Government and to find new and more integrated ways of tackling the worst problems.