The Prime Minister has said that he finds it “concerning” that there is “a significant rise” of people who deemed “unfit to work” and are claiming benefits.
Rishi Sunak said that England will be “rewarded” with tax cuts as the government does not believe the country is now “three times sicker than it was a decade ago.”
The government are to make it far more difficult for people to claim out of work and sickness benefits which is costing the taxpayer tens of millions every year.
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Sunak told the BBC, “What we have seen over the past couple of years is a very significant rise in the number of people who have been deemed unfit to work, and that is something that is concerning to me.
“In the last decade, that system hasn’t been reformed at all and you have seen the number of people who are signed-off has tripled. Now do I think our country is three times sicker than it was a decade ago? The answer is no.
“The system is not working as it was designed to work and now we are bringing forward reforms that will mean that we look at the eligibility for who is signed-off sick.
“That won’t affect all those on existing benefits. It will come in over time on people who are newly presenting to the welfare system.
“And that is something I think is the right thing. It is about fairness. It is about making sure that everybody who can work, does work.
And for everyone who is working hard, we reward that hard work with tax cuts – that is a conservative approach, it is one that I think is right for our country.
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