Mel Stride supported the planned changes to the system. Credit: Julian Simmonds for The Telegraph
Applying for benefits because he is considered too ill to work will be significantly more difficult under plans the government will announce next week.
Ministers will say that they want to reform the performance assessment system that determines whether a person is fit enough for employment.
The plans will aim to cut the 2.4 million people who receive sickness benefits but receive no support to get them back to work due to their health.
This figure has risen by 40 percent over the past decade, with a notable increase in the number of people reporting long-term illness during and after the Covid pandemic.
One of the proposed changes to be seen experts called for more consideration for work-from-home opportunities for people with disabilities, which could offer employment opportunities unavailable ten years ago.
The other will explore whether people who are considered unable to work due to mental health problems can get support from job trainers to see if some form of work is appropriate for their situation.
These ideas, the first reform of the system since 2011, will be unveiled at consultations next week with a view to announcing official budget changes later this year, which means speedy implementation.< /p>
It is hoped that the new approach, if it implemented, will allow hundreds of thousands of people who currently qualify for long-term sickness benefits to find work.
1407 A Growing Disease Crisis
The new system will affect people already claiming sickness benefits. when they are revalued, which happens about every few years, and new applicants appear.
Mel Stride, Minister of Labor and Pensions, supported the change, while Rishi Sunak called for reforms to help more people. move from welfare to work.
Mr Stride's ally told The Telegraph: «Mel believes passionately in the power of work to change people's lives, and he thinks it's wrong to write someone off.»< /p>
“He is making bold reforms to the system to ensure it reflects how the world of work has changed and the job support now available to people with disabilities and disabilities. We know that a significant part of this group wants to work, but they are being held back. Mel wants to make sure that's not the case anymore.»
Seen as a major political announcement within the government, the reforms are the latest in a series of changes aimed at getting people receiving benefits back to work.
< p>The jump in the number of applicants for benefits during the quarantine due to Covid has not been reversed. to pre-pandemic levels, meaning it has become a focus as ministers seek to spur economic growth.
The proposed changes revolve around how people who claim benefits because they are too sick to work are classified according to the level of wealth. appraisers.
1805 Prolonged illness, economic inactivity
Those who are considered able to take any kind of work are considered to have «limited working capacity», that is, they are encouraged to continue to look for work. They are provided with job mentors to help them get back to work and receive an average of around £400 a month in sick pay. There are about 450,000 people in this group.
But those who are assessed as generally unable to work are considered to have «limited ability to work» — a category with a similar name, but with different consequences. .
This group does not receive active state assistance in finding a job. They receive nearly double the allowance, at around £800 a month, although the amounts vary depending on personal circumstances.
There are 2.4 million people in this category, a marked increase from the past, with government officials claiming that this category was designed to be much more targeted.
Ministers want to reduce the number of people in this group by hundreds of thousands and will argue that the lack of support from the state in finding a job may result in non-performance of duties. Instead, they will propose ways to encourage people to move into the first group.
They are expected to recognize that many seriously ill and disabled British people are rightfully considered too sick to work and should therefore receive financial support from the state. But they will also argue that too many people receive sickness benefits without any support from the social security system in returning to work.
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