ePolitix.com Stakeholders comment on the Conservative Party's proposals for welfare reform.

These include a two-year limit on jobseekers' allowance, community work for the long-term unemployed, benefit cuts for those refusing three "reasonable" job offers and the reassessment of all incapacity benefit (IB) claimants.

Conservative leader David Cameron said: "Are we really saying there are half a million people in this country under 35 who are simply too ill to work? I don't think that's right.

"I think we have got to make changes and this is a genuinely thought through and worked out package which I think will help get more people into work and help them make better lives for themselves and their families."

Party response: Labour

Peter Hain, work and pensions secretary, said: "The Tories were expected to reveal today how they would save an extra £3bn from welfare to deliver his tax credit spending pledges. 

"But in the small print of the Tory document it is now clear that the Tories cannot find a single penny of the additional savings they were promising over and above the government's existing plans.

"Today's failure leaves a serious, £3bn black hole in the Tory tax and spend plans from this policy alone.

"At the same time, the document promises no new funding to pay for the introduction of a major national community work scheme and the medical reassessment of 2.6 million IB claimants. In fact, they indicate plans to cut successful back-to-work programmes like the New Deal.

"Labour is already sharply increasing the expectations on job seekers and our Flexible New Deal will see private and voluntary providers being paid to move more people into sustainable jobs. Instead of PR gimmicks, our focus on training and work trials, backed by tough expectations on claimants, is what will move people into real jobs which lift them and their families out of poverty."

Party response: Liberal Democrat

Danny Alexander, work and pensions spokesperson, said: "The Tory proposals are hollow rhetoric designed to sound tough rather than helping people back to work.

"The real issue is how to reduce poverty and raise aspirations by ensuring everyone has access to a fulfilling and sustainable job, not cosmetically lowering the benefit claimant numbers.

"At best these plans will increase child poverty and do little to promote sustainable employment.

"The Tories are completely missing the point on welfare reform - switching people between benefits will not tackle the problem of child poverty, low skills and mental and physical barriers to work."

Stakeholder response: ESRC



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The ESRC Centre for Microeconomic Analysis of Public Policy, at the Institute for Fiscal Studies, currently funds research in the area of welfare reform. 'Welfare reform in the UK: 1997-2007' presents a tour of welfare reform in the UK since the last change of government, summarising the most important changes in active labour market policies, and in measures intended to strengthen financial incentives to work.
For more information contact: Professor Richard Blundell, by email at r.blundell@ucl.ac.uk
 
The ESRC Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion also has a research programme dedicated to the evaluation of welfare to work initiatives, particularly focusing on those which have the greatest impact on the most disadvantaged groups, such as young people on the voluntary sector option of NDYP. 

JobcentrePlus has transformed the environment for the delivery of welfare to work programmes for people of working age but the benefits for non-jobseekers are less clear: they are analysing JobcentrePlus performance data to examine the effects. For more information contact: Tania Burchardt, by email at t.burchardt@lse.ac.uk

Stakeholder response: Working Links



To send a comment to Working Links click here

A spokesperson said: "We welcome the Conservatives' acknowledgement that work is the best route out of poverty and that more must therefore be done to support people to find and sustain employment. We also recognise the economic imperative of addressing a rising welfare budget at national and local government level. 

"We know that one of the most effective ways of achieving both is to offer personalised tailored support which draws on the expertise that exist across all sectors - private, public and voluntary. Our experience is that whilst there are a minority of benefit claimants who are able to work but choose not to, the vast majority do want to work.

"If those who do not want to work can be identified, then an increase in conditionality may be effective for this group. However, any assessment of people's capability to work needs to be sufficiently thorough and incorporate adequate safeguards to protect the most vulnerable individuals, many of whom suffer from mental health conditions which are not always easily identifiable.

"Whilst there is value in identifying those who chose not to work, a thorough reassessment of all IB claimants would be costly and its funding would need serious consideration.

"To reiterate, it is our experience that the vast majority of benefit recipients do want to work but face genuine barriers to doing so. These can include the financial costs of returning to work, low self-esteem, poor motivation, problems accessing childcare or a lack of necessary skills. These issues need to be addressed if these individuals are to find and sustain employment. 

"Compelling people to participate in community work may have some value. For example, it could serve to familiarise an individual with the world of work, the discipline of regular attendance and learning to be part of a team. However, if the community work does not equip an individual with additional skills or address the barriers they face then it is difficult to see what value long-term participation would have.

"Additionally, in order for these type of community projects to be effective, they would have to be both suitable and properly managed. We would echo concerns that have been raised by third sector organisations about how this type of work would be policed and how those mandated to participate would work alongside genuine volunteers. These issues need to be addressed if such a system is to work.

"It is important to ensure that welfare to work programmes focus on supporting people into work but also on helping them retain and progress in the workplace. This means addressing the skills deficit presented by many benefit claimants. We would like to understand the Conservatives proposals on this in more detail."