Labour MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth, Debbie Abrahams, has been elected as the chair of the Work and Pensions Committee (WPC).

Abrahams has been MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth since 2011 and served as Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from 27 June 2016 to 11 March 2018 in former Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn’s, Shadow Cabinet.

She was also a Shadow Minister within the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) from 18 September 2015 to 27 June 2016.

Her election as WPC chair was announced in parliament by the Speaker of the House.

Commenting on her appointment, Abrahams said: “I am profoundly grateful for the support from colleagues across the House.

“The work of the DWP is critical to the lives of those it touches in a way few others are.

“When formed, we’ll robustly examine the DWP’s work, engaging stakeholders and will report with a cross-party consensus to make the system work fairly for people and for the nation.”

Hymans Robertson head of pensions policy innovation, Calum Cooper, added: “We welcome the appointment of Debbie Abrahams to this role and look forward to working with her as part of her new remit.

“With the highly anticipated Pensions Review in progress, there will be a big focus for the WPC to watch the government’s work in this area. Its focus should be to help improve pensions for all savers.”

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