Reform will ban foreign nationals including those with EU settled
status from claiming almost all forms of welfare, in plans it
will unveil tomorrow.
The move comes as part of the party's 50-page plan to cut the
welfare bill by over £50 billion a year a reduction of a quarter.
It dwarfs the reforms delivered by the previous Conservative
government, which saved just £20.5bn a year - and later oversaw
year-on-year increases of the welfare budget of 5 per cent above
inflation.
The decision goes beyond the party's previous commitment to cut
Universal Credit for foreign nationals by incorporating almost
all forms of welfare. Under the proposals, foreign nationals will
no longer qualify for Universal Credit, Housing Benefit, Pension
Credit, Jobseeker's Allowance, Child Benefit, free childcare, or
disability benefits. The change will save the taxpayer £21
billion per annum by the fifth year of the policy.
Only a small number of exemptions would apply including the War
Widows Pension and Armed Forces compensation to protect the
entitlements of those who have served in Britain's armed forces
or built up a life of contributions.
Reform estimates that between April 2022 and February 2026, the
UK spent £55 billion on providing benefits for foreign nationals.
The policy would require the Government to renegotiate the EU
withdrawal agreement, negotiated by the last Conservative
Government, which requires the UK to pay benefits to EU nationals
as if they were British citizens. The party has accounted
for an associated uplift in expenditure for benefits for UK
nationals that return to the UK from the EU.
The move is in addition to the party's £22 billion changes to the
disability and health benefits, which include:
- Abolishing both PIP and UC Health;
- Replacing cash payments for low-level disability with the
provision of services and support only;
- Reassess all current PIP claimants according to a new tighter
assessment;
- Presumption of rejection for cash payments for anxiety and
depression;
- A new system of employer insurance to support workers in the
first two years of sickness-related absence accompanied by a
comparable cut in Employer NICs.
- Significant investment in services like CBT therapy and
musculoskeletal therapies to help people back to work.
In a speech tomorrow [Monday], Reform's Shadow Chancellor will
unveil the party's plan to End Benefits Britain and warn that
unless savings are made the benefits bill will bankrupt Britain
and send taxes even higher.' It marks the culmination of a
six-month piece of work by the party to develop the most
comprehensive plan for welfare reform in a generation. On current
forecasts, the welfare bill will hit £407 billion by 2030, which
could force taxes to increase by £54 billion.
Jenrick will denounce the welfarist policies of both the Tory and
Labour Parties, describing them as two sides of the same coin'.
When was Tory welfare secretary, the non-pensions welfare
bill grew 11% faster than inflation. This has continued under
Labour with the non-pensions welfare bill expected to grow by 23%
in real terms over this parliament. He will argue that only
Reform UK is truly on the side of hardworking Britain that holds
our country together.'
Reform UK Shadow Chancellor MP, said:
Forcing British workers to pay for the benefits of foreigners is
not just economically illiterate but plain immoral. People are
more than happy to support their neighbours in hard times, but
the British taxpayer cannot afford to subsidise everyone on the
planet, especially those who have not paid in.
"The public have been crying out for this change for
decades. Unlike the two old parties, Reform will deliver a
system that's fair for the British people.
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