Liz Kendall responds to the Tories’ ‘Back to Work Plan’

Liz Kendall, Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, responding to the Tories’ ‘Back to Work Plan’ said;

“This poor excuse of a proposal does nothing to fundamentally change the state of our health service or our Jobcentres after a decade of failure from the Tories. A record 7.8 million people are still stuck on NHS waiting lists, and 2.6 million people are trapped out of work due to long term sickness, with the increase since the pandemic alone costing the taxpayer an extra £15.7 billion a year.

“A healthy nation is critical to a healthy economy. But look beneath the bonnet of today’s announcement and you will see more of the same: a failing approach that doesn’t even scratch the surface of the problem.

“Labour’s plan will tackle the root causes of economic inactivity and grow the economy, bring the benefits bill down and get Britain working. That means driving down NHS waiting lists, ending the crisis in mental healthcare, reforming social security, overhauling Jobcentres, making work pay, and supporting people into good jobs across every part of the country. A real plan to get Britain working.”