Government to overspend £8.6bn on benefits bill as DWP boss says ‘radical’ changes to come
Government to overspend £8.6bn on benefits bill as DWP boss says ‘radical’ changes to come
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Labour should drop its “cruel and poorly thought-out plans” says leading charity. Government spending on benefits is set to be £8.6 billion over budget, DWP boss Liz Kendall has said, as she promises ‘radical reforms’ to cut the welfare bill. Speaking in Commons, the work and pensions secretary said that the overspend was “unavoidable” due to “the inheritance from the last government.” The dire economic forecast highlights the need for Labour’s plans to reform the welfare system, she added.
The latest government data shows that the number of people claiming Universal Credit has more than doubled since 2020, from around three million to more than six million. There are also now 2.8 million people not seeking employment due to ill health, with both figures skyrocketing during the Covid pandemic.
![[Shadow DWP secretary Helen Whately says “things changed” during the pandemic which led to welfare bill spiking (UK Parliament/PA)]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2024/01/30/11/f2298f71fc8f830d836aa29f6d36674bY29udGVudHNlYXJjaGFwaSwxNzA2Njk5NDU0-2.58503663.jpg)
Writing to MPs, Ms Kendall said: “The likely scale of the eventual breach has been known since March 2023. No action was taken by the previous administration to avoid it. “Whilst this Government has already shown that it will not shy away from difficult decisions, this breach could only have been addressed through implementing immediate and severe cuts to welfare spending. This would not have been the right course of action.”.
The welfare cap is a limit set by the Treasury on how much the government can spend on most benefits, excluding the state pension. At Labour’s Autumn Budget, Rachel Reeves lifted the welfare cap set by the Conservatives for the 2024/25 from £146 billion to £162.5 billion after taking into account the OBR’s forecast overspend. This is set to rise to £204.2 billion by 2029/30 following her changes.
