The Coalition of the Swilling

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February 06, 2006

This Will Engender Some Lively Debate

...I'm thinking.

The British government wants to reduce the welfare rolls by getting the able-bodied and able-minded back to work. But that may not be so simple: Already, the idea has reignited old debates on work vs. welfare and Britain's unemployment culture.

...Under the old incapacity benefit system, long-term claimants received higher welfare payments than those who had recently been assigned incapacity benefit -- and sometimes received more in benefits than they could from working -- leading to "perverse incentives" to stay on benefits that Welfare Secretary John Hutton has called "one of the greatest barriers to social justice in Britain."

Under the new Employment and Support Allowance, however, the government will be "set(ting) a new direction, enabling and empowering people to fulfill their potential and ambitions, not consigning them to a lifetime on benefit," Hutton says.

"Essentially we want to return to fundamental principles where the welfare state is able to respond to people's abilities and help them into the work place -- not one that condemns them to a life on benefits."

The interesting thing so far seems to be that the major objection to the plan is a fear of employer discrimination. Companies don't want to hire these 'off-work' people and apparently are going to have to be coaxed or coerced. I remember the opposite problem here with 'welfare reform'.

Posted by tree hugging sister at February 6, 2006 03:05 AM

Comments

Posted by: Ken Summers at February 6, 2006 10:18 AM