'Moral and economic case for welfare reforms' - Starmer's spokesmanpublished at 13:05 Greenwich Mean TimeBreaking
We've just had new comments from Keir Starmer's spokesman, who says there are both "moral" and economic reasons to change the welfare system.
As a reminder, the government is expected to announce changes to benefits tomorrow.
Speaking to reporters, Starmer's spokesman says: "The prime minister has been clear there is both a moral and an economic case for fixing our broken social security system that’s holding our people back, and our country back."
The spokesman adds: "Three million people are out of work for health reasons, and one in eight young people not currently in work, education or training.
"So we’ve got a duty to fix the system, to ensure that that safety net is always there for the most vulnerable and severely disabled, but also supports back into work, rather than leaving people written off.”
Asked if the reforms were being carried out because of the UK’s fiscal backdrop, the spokesman replied: "No, I think when you look at the fact that we have the highest level of working-age inactivity due to ill health in western Europe, we’re the only major economy whose employment rate hasn’t recovered since the pandemic, there is a duty to fix the broken system that is letting millions of people in this country down."