Chancellor’s ‘back to work’ Budget

Torsten Bell, Chief Executive at the Resolution Foundation said:

“This is a big package of carrots and sticks from the Chancellor. Paying childcare costs upfront in Universal Credit is very welcome – removing a cash flow barrier to some entering work.

“Scrapping the Work Capability Assessment is the biggest reform of disability benefits in a decade. The goal of avoiding labelling some people as unable to work is valuable, but no-one should pretend this reform is easy – it will take years to implement.

“Alongside winners who keep higher benefits for longer, there risks being significant losers who are too ill to work but don’t have a longer lasting disability – for example, because they are recovering after an operation.”