Welfare spending in the UK will be reduced by about $6.45 billion dollars, as the government seeks to bring the country’s finances under control.
This will be done, in part, by making it harder for people to claim disability benefits.
CGTN’s Li Jianhua has the latest from Wesminister.
#UK#Budget#SpringStatement#Finance #economy
This will be done, in part, by making it harder for people to claim disability benefits.
CGTN’s Li Jianhua has the latest from Wesminister.
#UK#Budget#SpringStatement#Finance #economy
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NewsTranscript
00:00According to the latest government analysis, it seems like millions of families will be affected.
00:06It is not only about the one million family in England and Wales anymore.
00:11So according to the Department for Work and Pensions,
00:153.2 million families probably would lose financially by the financial year of 2029-2030.
00:23On average, each family could lose about US$2,200 a year.
00:29Some of the families actually are gaining because of the change.
00:323.8 families are expected to be actually better off.
00:36And we're looking at each family raking in an extra of US$540 every year.
00:43And Rita Reeves announced the cut to welfare spending last week.
00:48And she found the benefits for new claimants were not working
00:51because of illnesses or disabilities would be frozen by 2030.
00:56And also a reform on PIP, that is Personal Independence Payment,
01:00that is a scheme designed by the government to help those who are not working because of long-term sickness.
01:06And then it would be the eligibility criteria would be tighter starting 2026 to save public spending.
01:14But today, Rachel Reeves, the UK's finance minister, made some adjustments.
01:19She formed the standards allowance for those who are on universal credit.
01:23And that will actually be increased in the financial year of 2029-2030.
01:28But in the meantime, there will be less support for new claimants with health issues starting April 2026.
01:35Which means if you have health issues and you apply for that after April 2026,
01:40then your extra allowance will be cut in half.
01:44And according to the Office for National Statistics in the UK,
01:47there are about 3 million people who are not working because of long-term sickness.
01:52And today, Rachel Reeves said the government hopes that more people can go back to the workforce where they can.
01:58Now let's take a listen.
02:00More than a thousand people every day are qualifying for personal independence payments.
02:05One in eight young people are not in employment, education or training.
02:10If we do nothing, we are writing off an entire generation.
02:15That cannot be right and we will not stand for it.
02:19It is a waste of their potential and it is a waste of their futures and we will change it.
02:26And of course Sally, the opposition and the charities have said that you know what,
02:30it could push more people into hardship.
02:33In the meantime, it has been confirmed the government will increase spending in defence by about 2.8 billion US dollars.
02:42And this is a continuation of the government's announcement earlier in the month
02:46that it would increase the public spending to about 2.5% by 2027.
02:52And we know Sally, it is not only the UK, it is all across Europe,
02:55given that the United States is urging many countries to increase their spending.