JJ Anisiobi has argued that Britain has gone soft and that young people are normalising anxiety as a reason to stop working. Writing in the Daily Express, he said that calling anxiety a reason to stop working is becoming normal, but that normalising that escape is how young lives get smaller without anyone noticing.
Welfare overhaul proposal
Tony Blair has said that young people with non-work-limiting health conditions such as anxiety and depression should stop receiving cash benefits. The Tony Blair Institute for Global Change has published a report calling for an overhaul of Britain's welfare and employment system amid concern about the number of young people not in education, employment or training.
One of its proposals is particularly interesting – instead of simply giving cash benefits to some under-25s with health conditions that do not prevent them working, redirect that support towards mental-health treatment, skills training and job placements.
Normal feelings vs real illness
JJ Anisiobi said he is not belittling mental illness. He said that depression can be a serious and debilitating condition, and anybody genuinely too unwell to work deserves compassion, treatment and support. However, he argued that anxiety is where a much more grown-up conversation is needed.
He said he worries that normal feelings of anxiety, low confidence and self-doubt can sometimes be treated as reasons to withdraw from everyday life rather than emotions we need to learn how to manage. Feeling nervous about a job interview is normal, as is dreading your first day at work or having days when you don't feel particularly confident, motivated or happy.
Work builds life skills
JJ Anisiobi said that work isn't just about receiving a payslip at the end of the month. He said you learn how to deal with people you don't particularly like, you learn to turn up when you'd rather stay in bed, and you learn how to take criticism, solve problems, make friends, manage money and discover what you're actually good and bad at – those are life skills.
He said that signing a young person off work indefinitely, when their condition doesn't actually prevent them from working, risks doing them more harm than good. He added that simply telling an anxious 20-year-old to get a job isn't a serious policy either, which is why the idea of investing in therapy, training and supported employment rather than merely writing a cheque deserves consideration.
Safety net and Christian revival
The objective shouldn't be to punish young people for struggling, but to stop temporary difficulties becoming permanent disengagement from the world of work. There must always be a safety net for people who genuinely cannot work, but a safety net should catch you when you fall and help spring you back up onto your feet when ready.
In a separate piece, JJ Anisiobi said he spent last weekend in Paris, where he watched Pope Leo XIV celebrate Mass in the City of Light – which he described as awe-inspiring. Around 600,000 people stood together in faith, with different races, nationalities and languages, Catholics and non-Catholics alike, all gathered peacefully for something bigger than themselves. He said it reminded him how desperately Britain needs a Christian revival.
He said Britain sometimes seems almost embarrassed by Christianity, despite it having shaped its values, institutions and culture for centuries. He argued that you don't have to attend Mass every Sunday – or even believe in God – to recognise the value of a society that promotes compassion, forgiveness, charity, family, community and responsibility towards others. He said Britain is historically a Christian country and shouldn't be frightened to say so, and that perhaps instead of pushing Christianity further into the background, Britain should rediscover some of the values it appears to have left behind.
Olympic kit suggestion
JJ Anisiobi also commented on reports that Keely Hodgkinson will be banned from wearing her all-black Nike catsuit at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics because of Team GB's sponsorship rules. He said he has a simple solution – switch kit manufacturer to Nike and increase Britain's chances of success. He said the catsuit looks fantastic and apparently makes athletes more streamlined too, and when Olympic medals can be decided by fractions of a second, surely every available advantage should be taken.
