Southway Housing Trust's Advice Services Manager Trish Martin will be using her expertise to help the Department of Work and Pensions Commons Select Committee at a special session at Manchester Town Hall tomorrow.

Here she tells us all about it:

Sitting on a Parliamentary Select Committee

I have been invited to Manchester Town Hall on Tuesday 1st April to sit on the Department of Work and Pensions Commons Select Committee, round table discussion looking into Pensioner Poverty and Pension Credit. This will be televised directly to the House of Commons on Parliamentary TV. It was seen as important that housing associations should be represented as most do a lot of work to makeing sure their tenants have maximised their income. 

What is a Select Committee? 

 Select Committees are cross-party groups of MPs or Lords who investigate specific issues or scrutinise the work of the Government. They run enquiries on specific topics. They carry out their work through correspondence, by engaging with the public through events and surveys, holding round table discussions and undertaking visits. They are a very important part of the way Parliament scrutinises the work of the Government. There is a Commons Select Committee for each Government department.  

Members of the Work and Pensions Select Committee that will be present: 

Debbie Abrahams (Chair)                     Amanda Hack MP 

Johanna Baxter MP                                 Frank McNally MP 

Peter Bedford MP                                    John Milne MP 

Steve Darling MP                                     Danny Kruger MP 

Damien Egan MP                                     David Pinto-Duschinsky MP 

Gill German MP 

On my panel there will be five members, and we will be answering questions on the evidence submitted by Greater Manchester Combined Authorityity (GMCA) and Leeds Older People forum. People on the panel are:

  • Paul McGarry, Head of the Greater Manchester Ageing Hub, GMCA 
  • Lauren McKechnie , CEO Age UK Bolton 
  • Trish Martin, Advice Services Manager, Southway Housing Trust 
  • Jo Volpe, CEO, Leeds Older People Forum. 
  • Jo Rowlands, Leeds City Council, (Financial Inclusion) 

 I will be asked two questions by the Select Panel   about benefits take up (Pension Credit and Attendance Allowance) and Department of Work and Penmsions (DWP) policies and processes. If you want to watch the session you can watch here and the session I am part of is due to start at 10am: 

https://www.parliamentlive.tv/Commons