Work and Pensions Select Committee


The Work and Pensions Select Committee is a select committee of the House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The remit of the Committee is to examine the expenditure, administration and policy of the Department for Work and Pensions and its associated public bodies.

Membership (2020-present)

The full Membership of the committee in the 58th Parliament is as follows:

Members (2017-2019)

Since June 2015 the Committee Chair had been Frank Field.
The full Membership of the committee in the 57th Parliament is as follows:

Changes in membership between parliaments

Occasionally, the House of Commons orders changes to be made in terms of membership of select committees, as proposed by the Committee of Selection. It often follows an MP's promotion to the frontbench.

2017–

2015–2017

2010–2015

Significant inquiries

The committee has been involved in a number of significant investigations.

Welfare safety net inquiry (2015)

On 18 September 2015, the Committee announced that it was beginning an enquiry into the 'welfare safety net'. The Committee's chair, in launching the enquiry, said:
"There is a great deal of concern that some of the least advantaged people are slipping through our safety net into a state of hunger. Our welfare safety net has developed over decades because there is a level below which we as a society do not believe anyone should fall, no matter where they live. We want to understand how local councils are adapting and coping with the changes in benefits and the extra responsibilities on them to meet genuine need and maintain that basic safety net."

Two child limit (2019)

In 2019 the Work and Pensions Select Committee recommended ending the two-child limit on welfare payments. The committee head evidence from charities, economists and faith groups and stated the limit had, “unintended consequences that no government should be willing to accept.” The committee stated the justification for the limit assumed all pregnancies were planned, that distinguishing between families on benefits and families in work was “crude and unrealistic”, further evidence did not support the case that the two child limit might encourage parents to increase their incomes from work. The committee argued for no significant distinction between households on benefits and those working. In April 2019, 72% of families getting tax credits were in work. In May 2019, 28% of working-age housing benefit claimants were, “in employment and not on passported benefit”. in October 2019, 33% of Universal Credit claimants were recorded as employed. Frank Field MP said, “Any family in this country, except the super-rich, could fall foul of the two-child limit if their circumstances changed for the worse. This is exactly why social security must act as a national insurance scheme covering people when they’re most exposed to hardship – not increase it.”