-
.
Osborne could cut benefits cap to £20,000 for families outside the South East where the cost of living is lower
George Osborne is looking at ways of slashing the UK's welfare budget
Already he has announced plans to slash welfare from £26,000 to £23,000
Further cuts could be planned for areas where rent is considered cheaper
Osborne wants £12bn in cuts and to be seen as 'tough on handouts'
Families in the majority of the country could see their annual cap on benefit claims cut to £20,000, it emerged yesterday.
George Osborne has already announced the threshold will be reduced from £26,000 a year to £23,000 across Britain.
But
government sources indicated he could reduce it further outside London
and the home counties – where the cost of properties is lower.Housing
benefit makes up a large proportion of Britain’s welfare bill and
ministers are particularly concerned that it has ballooned to £25billion
a year – and is highest in the capital because of the shortage of homes
and high rents charged by landlords.The
Chancellor, who is seeking to slash £12billion from the welfare bill,
is said to see the move as an important symbol of being tough on
handouts.Although
reducing the benefits cap to £23,000 a year would save £300million,
savings from the proposed regional variation are expected to be
relatively small – in the tens of millions. However the overall
principle of a ceiling on handouts has proved popular among both Tory
and Labour supporters since its introduction.Mr Osborne has also been looking at the idea of regional pay deals for the public sector which would save far more.
The
idea of a regional benefits cap was suggested in the last Parliament by
Labour’s Ed Balls – at a higher rate – but was furiously rejected by
the party’s MPs in northern seats.Ministers
are also considering a plan, laid out in a leaked policy paper written
by civil servants at the Department for Work and Pensions, to make cuts
to some disability benefits.
The document, written before the election and leaked to the BBC, suggests some claimants of sickness benefit could be instead shifted to jobseekers’ allowance – a cut of £30 a week.
The officials expressed concerns that the employment and support allowance (ESA), paid at a rate of £102.15 a week for an illness or disability, does not ‘incentivise’ the most able claimants to look for work. Those who undertake fitness-to-work tests and are deemed able to carry out some duties could be moved onto jobseekers’ allowance – which is only £73.10 a week.
Read more: www.dailymail.co.uk
.
GEORGE OSBORNE WHO IS '? |
