Is the current provision of debt advice fit for purpose?
The Treasury Committee will hold a one-off session examining the provision of debt advice provision at 10:15 on Tuesday 16 January.
In the first panel, the cross-party Committee will hear from representatives of three debt advice charities; Citizens Advice, Christians Against Poverty and StepChange.
Meeting details
MPs are likely to ask the panel about the current demand for debt advice and whether people are getting the debt advice they need. Committee members could examine how debt advice is provided and the individual roles of charities, the private sector and the Government in the process. Buy now pay later schemes, council tax and benefits overpayments are also likely to be discussed.
In the second panel, MPs will question representatives of the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS), an arms-length body of the Department of Work and Pensions, which funds debt advice.
Committee members are likely to ask MaPS about its funding and its strategy for commissioning debt advice, as well as problems it faces in providing debt advice. There may also be questions on its recent research into the demand for debt advice, council tax collection and the regulation of buy now pay later schemes.