Queen’s Speech - Welfare Reform Bill

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Wednesday 3 December 2008

Queen’s Speech - Welfare Reform Bill

“A Bill will be brought forward to reform the welfare system, to improve incentives for people to move from benefits into sustained employment and to provide greater support, choice and control for disabled people.”

Despite the global economic downturn, the UK has one of the strongest labour markets in the developed world. More than ever before we need to do what we can to help people avoid falling into the trap of long term unemployment, inactivity and poverty.

The Welfare Reform Bill will further reform the welfare and benefit systems to improve support and incentives for people to move from benefits into work, provide greater choice and control for disabled people, and encourage parental responsibility by introducing a requirement for births to be registered jointly by both parents.

The purpose of the Bill is to:

· build on a commitment to tackle worklessness, nationally and locally, and to create a tax and benefits system which raises family incomes.

· increase the responsibility of those on benefits to take active steps to help themselves get back to work, making clearer the relationship between the support people receive and the expectations on them to participate fully in society.

· provide greater choice and control for disabled people; encouraging independence and personal responsibility.

· promote parental responsibility through the introduction of joint birth registration.

The main benefits of the Bill would be:

· This Bill will help us to achieve our goal of an employment rate equivalent to 80 per cent of the working age population – the highest of any major industrialised country;

· to reduce the number of incapacity benefit claimants by 1 million;

· to help 300,000 more lone parents and 1 million more older people into work;

· and provide equality for disabled people by 2025.

The main elements of the Bill are:

· To simplify the benefits system by abolishing Income Support and moving all customers onto either Jobseekers’ Allowance if they’re well or Employment & Support Allowance if they’re sick.

· Alignment of contribution conditions between Employment & Support Allowance and Jobseeker’s Allowance.

· To ensure a greater sense of rights and responsibilities by applying a regime of benefit sanctions for non-attendance at Jobcentre.

· Requiring jobsearch by partners of benefit claimants to help everyone who can work find work.

· Abolition of Adult Dependency Increases in Carer’s Allowance and in Maternity Allowance.

· Work-focussed interviews for over-60s.

· There is support for those who play by the rules and consequences for those who do not.

· Requiring work-related activity in return for receipt of Employment & Support Allowance.

· Joint birth registration.