Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me for thinking the Labour Party would be bold enough to make the drastic changes this country needs. But to say the Government’s welfare reform doesn’t go far enough is the understatement of the year.
Liz Kendall’s proposals feel like they were hastily cobbled together with little meaningful thought about the benefits system. It’s a poisoned chalice no doubt – even the late Lord Field was sacked for daring to “think the unthinkable” when tasked with welfare reform under Tony Blair 25 years ago.
Unfortunately, not much has changed. While in opposition, Keir Starmer and his MPs fought every Tory proposal on the issue – sitting comfortably across the floor and knowing that the day had not yet come to shoulder the weight of the responsibility. But that day has now come, and it’s clear the Government would rather risk plunging Britain into financial ruin than taking on its army of backbenchers, lobbyists and well-funded pressure groups.
No doubt Kendall heard all of the usual objections: “People on benefits really want to work but can’t because of lack of support or poor job opportunities.” Or “Stigmatising people on benefits is punching down.” While I sympathise with these arguments, the reality of our public finances is too grim to ignore.
The cost of sickness and incapacity benefits alone has risen to £75billion in the last year alone, and it’s projected to exceed £100billion by 2030. Yet Kendall is bragging about shaving a measly £5billion off that figure? A deeper dive into how the system is being abused shows just how far gone we are.
How did we reach the point where taxpayers are footing the bill for 500,000 people who don’t work due to anxiety and depression? And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Personal Independence Payments (PIP) – a benefit meant to cover the extra costs of long-term disabilities – have surged by 1.5 million new claims since the start of the pandemic, a staggering 71% increase in just five years. T
he Department for Work and Pensions now reports more than 1,000 new PIP claims a day. This is unsustainable. The question is: what is the Government doing about it? So far, not much.
There will be some restrictions on PIP eligibility, prioritising those with severe disabilities, but changes won’t take effect until next year. Worse, current claimants will not be reassessed to weed out fraudulent or unnecessary claims, nor will there be a cap on benefits – even though, for many, it’s financially more rewarding to stay on benefits than to get a job.
Labour is also proposing a consultation on tightening health-related benefits for under-22s (17% of PIP claimants are under 30). With all due respect, consultations are expensive, slow, and easily hijacked by activists. Labour had years in opposition to think through these reforms but spent that time thwarting Tory proposals while claiming to be “the adults in the room.” It is obvious what should have been done.
For starters, PIP payments should not exist for mental health disabilities. PIP should be strictly for those with severe physical impairments at a capped rate. As it stands, 38% of PIP claims are for psychiatric disorders, including stress, anxiety, depression, mood disorders, and learning difficulties like dyslexia. I can guarantee that scrapping these claims would have saved far more than the £5billion Kendall is crowing about.
Moreover, it’s important to consider this – 1.3 million people receive the maximum PIP payment of £9,500 a year, on top of other benefits, for a disabling condition. But under the current system, this includes drug and alcohol abuse, obesity, anxiety, depression, and even needing help making decisions about money.
At the risk of sounding heartless, that is ridiculous. Being an addict, overweight, or bad with money should not entitle someone to taxpayer-funded benefits. It undermines the integrity of the welfare system and diverts resources away from people who genuinely cannot work.
Someone permanently paralysed from a back injury is not in the same category as someone with anxiety. And why, exactly, should someone struggling with money management be handed more of it? Even more absurdly, some of the ways you can qualify for disability benefits include bedwetting and constipation.
I’m sure every PIP claimant can make a case for why they think they deserve their payments. But want and need are two different things. The reality is that the number of working people propping up this system is unsustainable.
Funding people who don’t need it undermines the entire system’s credibility and is a recipe for disaster. Ahead of next week’s Spring Budget, one has to wonder: how do these measly savings factor into the Chancellor’s ever-dwindling fiscal headroom?
