MPs to probe councils’ role in lifting pensioners out of poverty
MPs on the Work and Pensions Committee will hold an evidence session on the role of local authorities and housing associations in tackling pensioner poverty.
Meeting details
With housing costs set to become a heavier burden for new retirees as ownership rates decline, local councils’ responsibility over the distribution of housing benefit will come into ever sharper focus. The Committee will question the Chair of the Local Government Association, David Fothergill and National Housing Federation Director Alistair Smyth.
They will also hear from software analytics firm Policy in Practice. The firm has been helping many councils and local authorities identify potential Pension Credit claimants to drive take-up. Here, they are likely to ask about the impact of boosting Pension Credit take up, for example, whether doing so could lead to savings elsewhere, including in health and social care.
In the last session of the Committee’s inquiry into Pensioner Poverty in January, MPs heard that women were more likely to be at risk of poverty in retirement due to unpaid work and care commitments throughout their lifetimes.