The Prime Minister opened Cabinet by setting out that the
Government has a clear mission to rebuild Britain, fix what is
broken and restore hope – and that requires hard, honest choices.
He said nowhere is that clearer than in the welfare system the
Government inherited.
He said the system is currently failing people, trapping
millions, telling them the only way to get help is to declare
they'll never work again — and then abandoning them, without hope
and opportunity.
The Prime Minister underlined that the Government does not accept
that. We will reform welfare to provide one-to-one support to
help people try work safely, protect people with lifelong
conditions from endless reassessments, and increase the basic
level of support for low-income families. That means the
Government will always protect those who can't work, will provide
real opportunity for those who can, and will build a welfare
system that's fair, strong, and there for the people who need it
— for years to come.
He underlined this is part of the Government's Plan for Change to
make life better for working people. That includes building new
council homes, expanding mental health support, raising the
Minimum Wage, delivering more free school meals, and creating
good jobs across Britain.
The Work and Pensions Secretary said these reforms are about
creating a society rooted in fairness, with strong safeguards to
protect the most vulnerable. She said that there is nothing
responsible about denying disabled people who want to work the
opportunity and support to do so.
The Prime Minister turned to the Business Secretary, who outlined
how our Industrial Strategy will boost investment, create good
skilled jobs and make Britain the best place to do business as
part of our plans to secure Britain's future through the Plan for
Change. He said our ten-year plan will transform our eight
highest-potential sectors over the next decade and provide the
stability businesses need for the long-term to unlock investment
and growth right across the country.
Turning to the NATO summit today, the Prime Minister said our
pledge to spend 5% of GDP on national security by 2035 is an
important moment, as the Government works to make sure NATO
remains the cornerstone of our defence for generations to
come. The Prime Minister said agreement to review the
trajectory and balance in 2029 is pragmatic in the face of
evolving threats and technologies. He underlined that national
security is the first duty of the Government, and we have
responded responsibly with our fully funded plan to significantly
increase defence spending to 2.6% from April 2027, and an
ambition of 3% in the next parliament. This will protect the
British people, promote British interests and make our country
more resilient and competitive in the long-term.
Moving to the Middle East, the Prime Minister said we welcome the
recent progress towards bringing about an end to the conflict and
continue to urgently call for de-escalation. He updated Cabinet
on his recent call with President Trump and other world leaders,
reiterating that Iran's nuclear programme is a threat to
international security and the US has taken action to alleviate
that threat. The Prime Minister said reaching a ceasefire is an
important opportunity to restore stability in the region and we
strongly support diplomatic efforts to reach a lasting
settlement.
The Foreign Secretary said the situation was fast-moving and
updated on our continued diplomatic work to urge de-escalation,
to protect British Nationals, and to safeguard our personnel and
reassure our partners in the Middle East.
