17 March 2025, 19:19

By Sir Iain Duncan Smith MP

To govern is to choose and against the backdrop of an increasingly unsafe world, the need to invest significantly more in defence and a flatlining economy, further reform of welfare is a necessity.

When I resigned from Cameron’s government, welfare stood at £61.6bn, yet by the end of this parliament, it is projected to be £108.7bn. Sickness benefit alone which was £19bn in 2016 is set to rise to £32bn. So it is with disability benefit, set to rise from £11bn to some £31bn.

Some of that rise is because Judge-led tribunals in disability appeals led to 60 per cent of appeals getting approved for benefits when DWP had previously rejected their claim.

Covid and the lockdowns have had an enormous negative impact on the welfare bill but that isn’t the whole issue. Behind these numbers, are real people. They are rising because, for example, the number of workless households with children, where all adults are economically inactive, has risen by 141,000 since 2016.

These are real families with real lives who no longer have the hope and purpose that comes with getting up and going to........

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