by Benefit claimants must “play by the rules” and get a job or face losing their handouts, the Work and Pensions Secretary said.
Mel Stride has attacked Labour’s “reckless” plans to ease welfare sanctions while promising to ensure greater fairness for the taxpayer.
He made the comments in an article for The Telegraph as the Tories mounted their attacks on Sir Keir Starmer as a soft tap on benefits.
The Minister revealed plans to remove benefits and handouts from claimants who are able to work but choose not to work.
Under the proposals those who refuse to look for a job will lose access to free prescriptions and discounted bus travel after six months.
If they still fail to seek employment, their benefits will be reduced after 18 months.
‘Strong safety net’
“My belief in fairness is at the heart of this approach. We will always provide a strong safety net to protect people from hardship,” Mr Stride wrote.
“But we will always balance this duty with an expectation that those who are able should work. That is only fair – and rightly what taxpayers expect.”
He added that ministers would match “support for those who need it most” with “expectations that people will play by the rules” by seeking employment.
Mr Stride attacked Labour’s proposals to end “punitive sanctions” against welfare recipients in his manifesto, criticizing the move as a “reckless approach” and saying it would cost taxpayers an extra £2 billion during the next parliament.
Rishi Sunak also took aim at Sir Keir’s position on benefits as he delivered a speech that fired the opening gun to a year-long election campaign.
Speaking at an event at Accrington Stanley Football Club, the Prime Minister said the Labor leader has no plans for spending “how it is to control welfare”.
Vote winner
Their comments show that the Tories believe that a tough stance on benefits will be a vote winner and that they want to make the issue a key sector.
Mr Stride is about to introduce new legislation which will increase housing support for the poorest families by £800 a year.
About 1.6 million private renters receiving benefits will have their payments increased to help them cope with the cost of living crisis.
The huge increase, which is due to hit their bank accounts from April, is the first time the level of housing allowance has been raised since 2020.
Ministers hope that the boost in payments will help encourage more claimants to work.
Campaigners have said that fear of being insecure about housing can be a key factor preventing people from applying for jobs.
It comes after official forecasts revealed that an extra two million people are set to start claiming disability benefits by the end of this decade.
The rise, driven by the rise in mental health problems, will push the welfare bill for the long-term ill from £17 billion to £48 billion by 2030.
Fairness at the heart of welfare reforms as housing allowance is stepped up
By Mel Stride, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
I have a confession to make. My new year’s resolution is not to read more novels, play darts or run a marathon.
In 2024 I will be guided by one simple priority: to put more people into good jobs.
We start the year in a good place. Conservative reforms have put nearly four million people into work since 2010 – whether that’s making work pay or modernizing the benefits system.
The number of jobs in the economy is at a record high of nearly 37 million, and our unemployment rate is below many of our international peers – including Canada, France and Spain.
The number of people who are economically inactive has fallen by over 300,000 since the peak of the pandemic. And we’ve cut National Insurance, meaning 27 million people will see more in their pay – and some families will receive nearly £1,000.
But now, my Department is introducing the next generation of welfare reforms to help even more people on their journey from benefits and into work.
At the heart of this approach is my belief in fairness. We will always provide a strong safety net to protect people from hardship, but we will always balance this obligation with the expectation that those who are able should work. That’s only fair – and rightly what taxpayers expect.
‘£800 better off’
And so we are making changes today which will mean that some of the most financially vulnerable families will be £800 better off on average a year. From Glasgow to Gosport, 1.6 million families will get more support with their housing costs, which we know is one of the main sources of cost of living pressure.
By increasing Local Housing Allowance payments by £7 billion over the next five years, we will give more tenants and landlords peace of mind that the rent will be paid.
But at the same time, we are also rolling out our Return to Work Plan, which will provide the tailored support they need to find work that suits their circumstances, reducing their reliance on the state.
The Chancellor’s expanded investment in programs like Universal Support will help thousands of people facing the toughest barriers to work to move into roles. And our reforms to Work Capability Assessments will more than halve the number flowing into the top tier of disability benefits in the coming years.
The plan also includes new measures which will ensure that able-bodied people who receive 18 months of support but still refuse to work will have their claims closed.
It is with this balanced approach – support for those who need it most, but expectations for people according to the rules – that we will maintain our positive employment record. One that has improved the life chances of 700,000 more children now growing up with a working parent compared to just over ten years ago.
‘turning a corner’
Contrast this with Sir Keir Starmer’s reckless approach. Labour’s only serious proposal to reform welfare is to ease benefit sanctions at a potential cost of £2 billion. And their £28 billion spending plans would speed up borrowing, and pressure households with extra tax and inflation. No wonder Sir Keir’s party never left office with unemployment lower than what they inherited.
We know that the cost of living remains the main priority of the community. The Prime Minister’s successful mission to reduce inflation clearly demonstrates that priority – and today’s increase in support for renters is just another part of a £104 billion aid package. But with the economy turning a corner, we are doing even more to pay for work by cutting taxes on employees and the self-employed, and increasing real wages, giving people more opportunities to improve their incomes through work .
Although the year has only just begun, I believe that our approach to social welfare policy – protecting the most vulnerable and helping people to get the full benefits of employment – will change for many years to come.
