British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Conservative Party, which faces an election next month, has announced details of plans to tighten rules on sick benefits, which it says could save 12 billion pounds ($15.3 billion) a year.
Sunak, who has previously said he wants to change welfare rules to combat a surge in people leaving the workforce, said reform was a “moral imperative” as well as a way to fix the country’s finances.
The plan includes an increase in mental health services, stricter assessments of people’s ability to work, and stricter rules for people who refuse to take up suitable work.
The Conservatives say the changes will save taxpayers £12 billion a year until the end of the next parliament, which runs until 2029.
However, the Institute for Financial Studies, an independent think tank, said many changes are planned based on existing financial projections.
Tom Waters, deputy director of the IFS, said the latest proposals were aimed at reducing the number of people eligible for benefits due to mental health conditions.
“Cutting is definitely possible,” he said. “But history shows that cost reduction is more difficult than claimed.”
Spending on sickness and disability benefits has risen by £20bn a year since the last UK election in 2019 – before the COVID pandemic – and is expected to rise to £10.6bn by 2029, the IFS said.
In contrast to increases in other rich countries, labor force participation among working-age Britons has fallen from pre-pandemic levels, largely due to long-term illness and rising student numbers.
The party called for national elections to be held on July 4. Opinion polls show the Conservatives are facing a crushing defeat from the centre-left opposition.
Labor said it would reduce waiting lists for health care to get more people back into work and check rising welfare bills.
