As part of the contentious welfare reform, an additional 400,000 individuals might be classified as unable to work.
The overhaul was intended to help long-term sick individuals return to employment, but it sparked anger even amongst Labour’s own members of parliament.
However, new data released last night indicates that the government’s projections now predict significantly higher numbers of individuals will be receiving the highest tier of disability benefits by 2030 compared to earlier estimates.
This change has been initiated due to Labour ministers discontinuing the proposals put forth by the former administration.
Tory
a government that would have compelled more individuals facing mobility issues and mental health challenges to seek employment.
Currently, there are 1.8 million individuals enrolled in the ‘limited capability for work or work-related activities’ segment of universal credit. These recipients receive an additional £5,000 annually compared to those on jobseeker’s allowance and do not have to actively seek employment.
Official projections from last fall indicated that this number was expected to rise to 2.6 million by 2030. However, new figures revealed in an updated government impact assessment suggest that this total might exceed three million.
Government officials informed The Times – which initially broke the story – that the primary cause of the increase was due to reversing the planned modifications to the work capability assessment proposed by the Conservatives, a process through which individuals become eligible for disability benefits.
This was scheduled to be implemented later this year.
Last night Shadow Chancellor Mel Stride, who developed the Tory blueprint while he was in government, said: ‘It takes a particular level of incompetence to bring forward a welfare reform plan which leaves more people on out-of-work benefits and fewer people in work.
‘ Labour took over reforms that aimed to reduce the number of individuals receiving long-term welfare assistance by hundreds of thousands, with no obligation for them to make efforts toward finding employment.’
‘They abandoned those principled reforms and opted instead for hasty reductions in disability benefits aimed solely at helping the Chancellor avoid breaching her financial guidelines.’
Although the Government first pledged to proceed with the initiative, ministers later overturned their decision—resulting in an annual expense of £1.6 billion—following a ruling from the High Court that deemed the modifications illegal due to the former administration’s failure to acknowledge that the reforms were driven by budget cuts.
The Labour party asserts that after the £1 billion set aside to facilitate greater employment returns becomes effective, a larger number of individuals will eventually find jobs overall.
However, the Office for Budget Responsibility last week estimated that 16,000 fewer people will be in work as a result of the reforms.
The reform of welfare, introduced by Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall earlier this month, has ignited debate and prompted warnings of potential dissent among her fellow party members.
During last week’s Spring Statement, Chancellor Rachel Reeves revealed that it would save almost £5 billion, excluding the £1 billion initiative aimed at getting people back into employment.
However, angry Labour backbencher members argue that she is achieving fiscal balance at the expense of disadvantaged and low-income families.
An internal impact assessment by Ms Kendall’s department found that 3.2 million families will on average lose £1,720 a year by April 2030.
Although 3.8 million households stand to receive an average annual benefit of £420, the evaluation also revealed that approximately 150,000 caregivers are expected to forfeit up to £500 million in assistance aimed at supporting their care for ill family members.
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