3 hours ago Watch: Liz Kendall questioned on Labour’s ‘Get Britain Working Again’ employment plans

Watch as Liz Kendall was questioned on Labour's "Get Britain Working Again" employment reform plans on Tuesday, 26 November.

Economics

4 hours ago UK politics: Kendall says ‘you must work if you can work’ as she warns benefits bill set to soar by £26bn

Young people ‘have a responsibility’ to take up new opportunities Liz Kendall, the work and pensions secretary has said

Economics

4 hours ago Tories accuse Labour of ‘pinching our ideas’ with jobs plan – UK politics live

Shadow minister says Liz Kendall ‘making right noises to fix economic activity’ but claims plans lack substanceThe Federation of Small Businesses applauds the ambition in the government’s Get Britain Working, but says that overcoming the “pervasive poverty of ambition” about employment in the public sector won’t be easy. This is from Tina McKenzie, the FSB’s policy chair.This is a start – but only a start – in fixing the pervasive poverty of ambition in the Jobcentre, health and other state systems when it comes to getting people back into work. Increasing employment is ultimately the most sure-fire way to drive up living standards and economic growth. Ministers have a huge job to persuade public institutions that work is good for health and that everyone who needs work should be helped...

Politics

8 hours ago Blaming people for poor mental health not part of Labour’s jobs plan, says minister – UK politics live

Alison McGovern says UK was unusual in not seeing employment rise after the pandemicAlison McGovern, the employment minister, said this morning she still has not decided who she will vote on teh assisted dying private member’s bill on Friday. MPs have a free vote.Explaining her dilemma, McGovern said:I haven’t decided how I’m going to vote. I’ve listened to my constituents who have been so kind and so generous to share with me their experiences, and I want to listen to my colleagues in the debate in full and decide how to vote.”I think it’s so important that people are able to have a good death and that families feel that their loved one was able to die in the most peaceful way possible in accordance with their views, but I haven’t decided on this issue.McGovern said it was good that pe...

Politics

8 hours ago UK politics live: Minister says some benefit claimants ‘stealing from the state’ as Labour unveils crackdown

Government set to announce measures to get more than two million Britons back into work

Politics

9 hours ago Keir Starmer’s jobs plan won’t work because Labour are ducking tough welfare decisions, Tories claim – UK politics live

PM set to unveil what government calls 'biggest employment reforms in generation’ as Tories say he is not making tough calls on sickness and benefitsGood morning. Today the government is unveiling what it is calling, in the headline on its overnight press release, the “biggest employment reforms in a generation”. The reforms are intended to tackle the fact that Britain is the only major economy where the employment rate has fallen over the last five years, largely because more people are out of work due to long-term ill health. A white paper called Get Britain Working is being published later, and Liz Kendall, the work and pensions secretary, is due to make a statement in the Commons later.In its overnight briefing, the Department for Work and Pensions has already flagged up numerous in...

Politics

28 hours ago UK politics live: Badenoch refuses to commit to reversing rise in employers’ national insurance in speech at CBI

Tory leader says she will not ‘comment on every bit of micro-policy’Q: Are you feeling the pressure? There is a petition signed by 2 million people calling for another election.Starmer says he is not surprised that people who did not support Labour in the first place want the election to be re-run. But that is not how the system worked.I’m not surprised, quite frankly, that as we’re doing the tough stuff, there are plenty of people who say, ‘Well, I’m impacted.’I think anybody who’s turned around an organisation or a business will tell you, and they’re right, if you’re really going to turn something around, you have to do the hard yards upfront. Don’t look at a tough decision and then leave it for a year or two.So we’re doing the tough stuff. But in the budget, which is probably the tou...

Politics

30 hours ago UK politics live: Starmer dismisses online petition calling for new election

PM says it has been driven by people who never backed Labour anywayQ: Are you feeling the pressure? There is a petition signed by 2 million people calling for another election.Starmer says he is not surprised that people who did not support Labour in the first place want the election to be re-run. But that is not how the system worked.I’m not surprised, quite frankly, that as we’re doing the tough stuff, there are plenty of people who say, ‘Well, I’m impacted.’I think anybody who’s turned around an organisation or a business will tell you, and they’re right, if you’re really going to turn something around, you have to do the hard yards upfront. Don’t look at a tough decision and then leave it for a year or two.So we’re doing the tough stuff. But in the budget, which is probably the toug...

Politics

31 hours ago UK politics live: safeguarding minister Jess Phillips urges people to intervene if women are being harassed in public

Phillips says people have to be mindful of their own safety but ‘you can definitely ask if someone is alright’Asked what his experience of government has been like, Starmer says he is taking the hard decisions first.I think anybody who’s turned around an organisation or a business will tell you, and they’re right, if you’re really going to turn something around, you have to do the hard yards upfront. Don’t look at a tough decision and then leave it for a year or two.So we’re doing the tough stuff. But in the budget, which is probably the toughest, I’m really pleased that we were able to put so much money into the National Health Service Anybody watching this who uses the NHS will know we absolutely had to make that a priority. Continue reading...

Politics