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Pensions Bill

moved Amendment No. 7: 7: Clause 3, page 3, leave out lines 26 to 31 The noble Lord said: We move on to carers and, in this amendment, to a particular group of carers who concern me a great deal. Members of the Committee may have heard a harrowing report on the ““Today”” programme a few weeks ago concerning children with disabled parents who cope with school and caring activities. I came to know about their plight some years ago when the Stroke Association started giving annual life-after-stroke awards. One of those is a carer’s award which is frequently won by children. My amendment is a probing amendment on an aspect of the carer contribution reforms that I do not believe was debated as the Bill proceeded through another place. Specifically, I wonder how current arrangements stand, should stand and will stand in relation to children who are carers. What happens to them after school-leaving age? No doubt some will get part-time jobs, but others will become full-time carers and be unable to start work because of their caring responsibilities. I do not know—I hope the Minister will tell me—whether I am talking of a constant number, or of a growing band of children. Since I tabled the amendment, it has been suggested to me that the latter is the case, but I simply do not know. Whatever the case, those children do an incredibly difficult job and one that, in the past, society has tended not to notice or to make accommodation for. The reforms in the Bill will, of course, make it easier for these children to move into their adult years without being penalised, rather than rewarded, for their exceptional contribution to society. I particularly welcome the change that means that it is no longer necessary for a person to have paid at least a year’s worth of contributions before he or she can claim a pension. I repeat that some children today will never have an opportunity to take a full-time job, whether because of the weight of their caring responsibilities or because those responsibilities prevented them getting as good an education as they might have had or for many other reasons. I hope that the Minister will be able to reassure me that these children will be moved on to the system swiftly and simply and will receive contribution credits when they reach school-leaving age. Employment is an extremely important subject in the context of the Bill. It is not just about the wage received. Numerous studies show that the employed are healthier and happier. Social networks are increased, self-confidence grows and carers will be much better served by a Government who concentrate on providing sufficient support so that they are able to enjoy a full life outside their caring responsibilities. However, for some people, perhaps many people, that is not the case, so I beg to move.