Long-term unemployed must do more to find work
There is a hardcore of unemployed people who are not taking up opportunities to work, said John Hutton today.
In a speech to the IPPR think-tank, the work and pensions secretary said hard-working families should not have to support people who refuse to find work.
“We know there is a small group of benefit claimants without the major physical or health barriers to work associated with incapacity benefit – who live in areas where there is no shortage of vacancies, particularly for low-skilled jobs but who nonetheless remain on benefits for long periods of time,” he said.
Many of these people live in areas where jobs are available and “there actually tends to be more vacancies in areas with low employment rates than the national average”, Mr Hutton told the IPPR. These “pockets of poverty and worklessness” are mainly found in urban areas, he said.
He cited Manchester and Glasgow as examples of cities in which the unemployment rate is higher than the national average but the number of available jobs is also higher than average.
He questioned why local unemployed people were not taking advantage of these jobs and asked: “If workers from Poland can take advantage of these vacancies in our major cities – why can’t our own people do so as well?”
Mr Hutton told the audience the welfare state was built around “fairness” and said: “We cannot reasonably ask hard-working families to pay for the unwillingness of some to take responsibility to engage in the labour market.”
Last year 950,000 people claimed jobseekers’ allowance (JSA), but his comments are focused on the 12 per cent who have been claiming unemployment benefits for at least six of the last seven years.
JSA is paid to people who are “capable of working, available for work and actively seeking work”, according to JobCentre Plus guidelines.
Claimants must sign a jobseeker’s agreement which can outline the action people must take to look for work and training.
The Liberal Democrat work and pensions spokesman questioned why it had taken the government so long to address the problem.
David Laws said: “Labour has been in power for almost ten years, so it seems extraordinary that in the twilight months of Blairism, John Hutton should be calling for a review of such an important problem.”
He argued: “Instead of tackling long-term unemployment, the government has increased the barriers to work with its strategy of mass means-testing.”
The Conservatives have questioned the seriousness of Mr Hutton’s proposals and have asked why this issue is not included in the welfare reform bill that is currently under discussion in parliament.
But Mr Hutton rejected claims that this initiative was anything other than serious.
“If anyone says this a gimmick or this is a debate we shouldn’t be having, I say get real. This is absolutely the debate we should be having because there is a real and serious issue that needs to be confronted,” he told BBC News 24.
“We can’t afford to leave hundred of thousands of people behind if we want our society to remain strong and cohesive.”
