Labour must stop just writing a cheque for benefit claimants, says McFadden

Pat McFadden, seen with Keir Starmer (centre) and a construction apprentice, said government owes people more than handouts. Photograph: Toby Melville/PA View image in fullscreen Pat McFadden, seen with Keir Starmer (centre) and a construction apprentice, said government owes people more than handouts. Photograph: Toby Melville/PA Labour must stop just writing a cheque for benefit claimants, says McFadden Exclusive: Work and pensions secretary signals possible reform to welfare as ministers await key reviews Labour must stop “simply writing a cheque” for health and disability benefit claimants and will provide more job support instead, the work and pensions secretary has said. Pat McFadden said the government was preparing to launch a renewed effort at welfare reform with a focus on encouraging more people with health conditions to get into work and off benefits. “I don’t believe government fulfils its responsibilities simply by writing a cheque. I think we owe people more than that,” he told the Guardian. Burnham has a chance to overhaul Pip. Here’s what a truly progressive system could look like | Frances Ryan Read more “Of course, for people who can never work, the system must always be there for them, and it always should be. But for those who could work, or could change their situation, then we’ve got to help them do that.” On a visit to a jobcentre in south London, McFadden signalled that welfare reform could form the backbone of Labour’s response to two landmark government-backed reports. Ministers are awaiting the final recommendations from Alan Milburn’s report into youth worklessness and Stephen Timms’s review of disability benefits. However, both have already highlighted deep-rooted problems with the welfare system and urged the government to take action. In its interim report published last week, the Timms review concluded that the personal independence payment (Pip), claimed by nearly 4 million people in England and Wales, was “not working” and suggested bold and radical proposals were needed to overhaul it. In late May the first phase of the Milburn review urged a “whole system reset” involving welfare, schools, and employers to tackle a big increase in the number of young people out of work or education to more than a million. McFadden, who commissioned both reviews, said work was under way on the government response in anticipation of the final reports this autumn. “Even before they’ve reported, I’m already speaking to the Department for Education [and] the Department for Health. We’re going to have to respond to this as a government. “It’s my job to put together a plan, a proposal, [that] changes the question of the welfare state from simply asking, ‘what benefits are you entitled to?’, to asking, ‘how can we help you live the fullest life?’” McFadden has previously hinted that Labour could stage a fresh attempt at overhauling the welfare system after the government was forced into a humiliating partial U-turn to avoid a backbenc