Chancellor John Healey has denied postponing difficult decisions on the welfare system, insisting the Government is making changes “now”. His comments came on Thursday morning after his Budget faced criticism for not dealing with the rising cost of welfare.
Criticism of the Budget
The Budget has been criticised for not addressing the ballooning cost of welfare, including by Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, who said the country is “drowning in an out-of-control welfare system”. The Institute for Fiscal Studies think tank also warned that the Budget delayed tough decisions.
Speaking to GB News, Mr Healey said ministers have already brought in a range of measures to cut the cost.
Changes already in place
He told the broadcaster: “This was a broken system. And two years ago we started putting back in place face-to-face assessments. We’ve changed terms of Universal Credit, so people don’t have to brand themselves as too sick to work.
“So, those are changes we’re making now. But in the long run, as I’ve argued, and the Prime Minister has said, too, we have to bring the cost of benefits down.
“We will, but we have to do that, especially for our young people, in a way that gives them a chance to make something of themselves. And when we’ve got a million youngsters that aren’t working and aren’t in education or training, that’s a moral duty to do this, and we will.”
Cost-of-living pressures
The Chancellor told BBC Radio 4’s Today that the Government “can never remove completely the cost-of-living pressures that people feel”.
He continued: “We can help where we can and that’s what I’m doing with creating a bit of breathing space for these households.”
He also told Today that “crude cuts” to the welfare system would be a bad idea when “people are feeling the cost-of-living pressures”.
