LABOUR will save “literally not a penny” from Britain’s bloated benefits bill, the PM has warned.
Rishi Sunak was defending funding his election manifesto of tax cuts from a £12 billion trim on handouts that has rocked since the pandemic.
1
He suggested the sum was small fry to the £35 billion extra the government is spending on handouts since Covid hit.
And he said huge spending cuts can be avoided by taking an axe to the sprialling bill, but a Labour government would have no interest in doing so.
He hit out: “The very clear difference in savings between us and the Labour Party is, I think you can make savings from constraining the growth in the welfare bill, the Labour Party do not think that you can save a penny in the welfare bill.”
The PM pointed to forecasts that the Personal Independence Payments will “go up by 50 per cent in the next few years, the welfare bill has already gone up by I think two thirds.
“We now spend more on working-age welfare for people with ill health or disability conditions than we do on schooling, transport, policing – I could go on.
“And we have seen a massive increase since the pandemic.”
He told reporters: “Now, I think there are a very sensible set of reforms that you can make to support people into work because I think that work is good for them.
“And if you just took the level of people who are on ill-health benefits back to where they were just before the pandemic – by the way, they were coming down every year before that – that would save you almost £35 billion.
“We’re not saying that, we’re just you can save 12.
The Tory manifesto has vowed to “address the unsustainable rise” in claims from workers with health conditions.
It promises to “provide a more objective consideration of people’s needs and stop the number of claims from rising unsustainable”.
And the Tories have also announced they will “tighten up how the benefits system assesses capability for work” and “overhaul the fit note process so that people are not being signed off sick as a default”.
There would also be “tougher sanctions rules so people who refuse to take up suitable jobs after 12 months on benefits can have their cases closed and their benefits removed entirely.”
Turning the screw on Sir Keir Starmer, Mr Sunak added: “So that’s what I think, and that’s the major difference between us – the Labour party don’t think you can save a penny, literally not a penny, from a welfare bill that is forecast to grow at rates that are clearly unsustainable.
“Again, that’s a clear choice at this election – if you want your welfare bill controlled, so we can use that money to invest in tax cuts and public services, we are the party that’s offering that.”
Labour have promised “big changes” in the manifesto, but held back any details of what would happen.
Their pledge plan reads: “Long waits for treatment of health conditions, particularly mental health, are contributing to the rise in economic inactivity. Labour will reform employment support so it drives growth and opportunity.
“Our system will be underpinned by rights and responsibilities – people who can work, should work – and there will be consequences for those who do not fulfil their obligations.”
A Labour spokesperson said: “This is the latest desperate announcement from Rishi Sunak, who has once again plucked numbers out of thin air in an attempt to disguise the fact that he has caused a spiralling benefits bill.
“These re-heated pledges, old policies and vague promises will not get Britain healthy or benefits under control, and do nothing to solve the fact that £10 billion of taxpayers’ money was lost to benefit fraud just last year.
“Labour has a plan to cut NHS waiting lists, get Britain back to work, make work pay and get the benefits bill down.”
