Treasury will not commit to reducing welfare bill before next election
Healey pledged a reduction in the benefits bill before the next election as forecasts showed welfare spending rising to £353bn this year.
- On Wednesday, Chancellor John Healey pledged to reduce the benefits bill before the next general election, citing a "moral duty" to help almost one million young people not in work, education, or training.
- Major welfare reforms remain delayed until 2027 as the government awaits findings from reviews into youth unemployment led by Alan Milburn and disability benefits co-chaired by Sir Stephen Timms.
- The Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts welfare spending will reach £431bn by 2031/32, with health-related benefits expected to exceed £105bn by the 2028-29 financial year.
- Healey clarified the government has "not set a timetable" for reducing the welfare bill within this Parliament, contradicting earlier suggestions of immediate cuts broadcast on BBC Radio 4.
- Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch criticized the Budget, claiming the country is "drowning in an out-of-control welfare system," while analysts warn that delaying decisions complicates future fiscal reforms.
19 Articles
19 Articles
British Chancellor of the Exchequer John Healy has been forced to backtrack on his promise to cut the welfare bill before the next general election. In an interview with BBC Radio 4, he initially said: “There will be a cut to the benefits bill. We will do it the Labour way.” However, the Treasury later clarified that the government had not committed to a specific deadline for spending to start falling. Healy himself told Channel 4 News: “We are …
Rachel Reeves U-Turns on Welfare Cuts Hours After Pledging to Reduce Benefits Bill
Internewscast Internewscast John Healey was forced into an embarrassing retreat over welfare spending on… This Post: Rachel Reeves U-Turns on Welfare Cuts Hours After Pledging to Reduce Benefits Bill first appeared on Internewscast
Treasury Tries to Walk Back Healey’s Pledge to Cut Welfare Before Election
The Treasury is in panic mode this morning after a spokesman went rogue by suggesting the government would be so bold as to cut the welfare bill before the election. Unfortunately that spokesman happens to be the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Here is what Healey told Nick Robinson on the Today programme: Robinson: “Briefly, because…
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