Q
72Mr.
Reed: Finally, on a slightly different tack, how are the
needs of children living in local authority care met under the Bill?
How will local authorities meet the requirements of those children?
What measurement processes will be in place to make sure that local
authorities meet the needs of the children whom they have in
looked-after
care? Helen
Goodman: This relates to the earlier discussion about
asylum-seeker, Gypsy and Traveller children. Most children in local
authority care are living fostered in families—I think 70 per
cent.—so they would be covered in households in the normal way.
The other 30 per cent., as I said, are looked after under the
obligation and statutory framework run by the children’s trusts.
As I also said, we have got a whole set of objectives and measurements
to improve the quality of life and outcomes for that particularly
vulnerable group of
children.
The
Chairman: We have time for one last very succinct question
and
answer.
Q
73Steve
Webb: The child poverty commission is overseeing a Bill
that the regulatory impact assessment says will cost about £400
billion over 20 years. Its budget, according to that assessment, is
£190,000. It will meet four times a year and appears to have no
research budget. Does it have any real teeth? Does it have the
resources to do the
job? Mr.
Timms: It is very important that it does. Our view of
the commission is that it should have a key role in identifying
barriers to hitting the targets, for example, and in advising the
Government on what each of the revisions of the strategy should
contain. If you look at organisations such as the Social Security
Advisory Committee or the Low Pay Commission, they are organisations
that one might say have fairly modest budgets in comparison with the
overall spend in the area in which they are advising but, as
Mr. Webb knows, they are very influential and effective
organisations.
Q
74Steve
Webb: Could it have a research budget, because otherwise
it is just scavenging for what is lying around? If it needs research
doing, can it have the budget to get it done?
Mr.
Timms: We can certainly have a look at that. I agree
with the point that it needs to have the resources to do the job that
the Bill is giving
it.
The
Chairman: I am afraid that that brings us to the end of
the time allotted for the Committee to ask questions of the
witnesses.
Ordered,
That further consideration be now adjourned.—(Mr.
Mudie.) 12.30
pm Adjourned
till this day at Four
o’clock.
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