UK Economy Minister Jeremy Hunt confirmed this Sunday that he will make changes to social support to bring more people into the job market when supply exceeds demand for jobs in the United Kingdom.
Hunt will detail the changes, including expanding support for childcare, when he presents the draft state budget to Parliament next Wednesday.
One of his priorities is to reduce the proportion of the population that has been inactive since the Covid-19 pandemic, mostly people over 50, disabled or dependent, the minister said in a statement.
The goal is to reintegrate people over 50 into the labor market and allow people with disabilities to work without losing state support.
Another goal is to change the Universal Credit Program, which distributes social assistance, so that recipients of these subsidies will increase the number of working hours.
According to him, the costs of kindergarten will be paid to families in advance to free parents for the labor market.
“These measures will help people get jobs, increase their working hours and extend their working lives, all of which contribute to the government’s priority to develop the economy,” Hunt said.
With an unemployment rate of 3.7%, there are a million jobs in the UK and a fifth of the workforce is currently out of work, due in part to health problems caused by the pandemic.
“Those who can work should do it, because independence is always better than dependence,” the minister said.
Hunt has signaled that in the next state budget, he wants to “remove the barriers” that prevent people from seeking work, namely “lack of qualifications, disability or prolonged absence from the labor market.”