SOME individuals on advantages are “taking the mickey”, the Work and Pensions Secretary has mentioned.
Liz Kendall additionally declared that too many children had been struggling to face the calls for of labor.
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She mentioned there was a “real downside” with the “Covid era” seeing jobs as aggravating.
And the Cupboard Minister warned that with out reforms the UK would spend £20billion extra on illness and incapacity advantages in simply 5 years.
Ministers are underneath strain to chop the ballooning welfare invoice and get individuals grafting.
Official figures present there are 270,000 individuals aged 16 to 34 who are usually not working owing to long-term illness and psychological well being situations.
The determine has surged by 60,000 (26 per cent) prior to now 12 months alone, the Division for Work and Pensions mentioned.
Requested if individuals had been “overdoing what can be a traditional fear prior to now”, Ms Kendall mentioned: “I feel there may be genuinely an issue with many younger individuals, notably the Covid era.
“We are able to’t have a state of affairs the place doing a day’s work is seen as aggravating.”
Requested if individuals had been pretending to be in poor health for a life on advantages, she mentioned: “I’ve little doubt, as there all the time have been, there are individuals who shouldn’t be on these advantages who’re taking the mickey. Now we have to finish that.”
Ms Kendall mentioned a inexperienced paper within the spring would pledge motion to overtake the best way job centres work.
She didn’t deny that cuts had been into consideration.
Experiences final week mentioned ministers had drawn up choices to scale back advantages and require the long-term sick to search for work.
Pressed on how lots of the 3.3million claiming incapacity advantages might get jobs, she informed ITV: “I feel there’s many extra, with the appropriate assist and assist, who might.”
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