Labour considers scrapping disability benefit for under-25s in major welfare shake-up

The proposals would affect roughly 184,000 young people aged 16 to 24 who currently receive the payment, which has already been cut by half to £217 a month for most new claimants from next April.

In its place, the government would offer subsidised jobs, targeted back-to-work programmes and mental health support, The Guardian reported. Officials are also examining whether to remove the benefit from existing claimants, not just new ones.

Those with the most severe disabilities would be protected from any reductions.

The Conservatives have put forward their own proposals for overhauling youth welfare. Under plans announced by leader Kemi Badenoch ahead of her party’s conference in Birmingham, under-25s without at least six months of continuous employment would be barred from claiming universal credit.

Instead, unemployed 16 to 24-year-olds deemed able to work would have to enrol on a new Get to Work scheme, attending job centres daily and taking part in work experience, training or community placements run through local councils.

Those who remained out of work after six months would see their payments reduced to a Subsistence Allowance worth 70 per cent of their previous claim. Anyone refusing to participate would lose welfare support entirely.

Ms Badenoch told The Spectator the current system was “unfair to the people who get up and go to work”.

Charities and experts have warned that both sets of proposals risk pushing vulnerable young people further from the jobs market rather than into it.

Jen Clark, Amnesty International UK’s economic, social and cultural rights lead, said: “This attention grabbing ‘tough love’ approach is oblivious to the realities of the job market and the harsh conditions facing young people living in poverty. We already know that punitive sanctions do not help young people move into work.”

Helen Barnard, director of policy and research at Trussell, said: “Universal Credit already falls well short of what people need to afford the essentials like food, bills and toiletries – and it’s forcing people to food banks.”

The disability charity Scope has estimated that roughly half of households where someone under 22 receives the universal credit health element are already living in poverty.

That figure could climb to more than nine in ten if support were withdrawn entirely.

The proposals from both parties come against the backdrop of a record one million young people aged 16 to 24 who are not in education, employment or training.

A review led by former Labour minister Alan Milburn into the youth employment crisis is expected to publish its final report this autumn.

Mr Milburn has said too few young people who moved on to disability benefits received help finding work, with evidence showing half remained out of employment 15 years later. He called this outcome a “catastrophic failure”.

Total UK welfare spending has reached £333billion this year. Pensioners account for roughly 55 per cent of that budget, while young people including those not in work or training receive about 2.5 per cent.

Mr Milburn described it as “shameful” that the government spent 25 times more on benefits for young people than on helping them into jobs.

Officials have studied systems abroad, including Denmark, which restricts access to its disability pension for under-40s, offering flexible jobs and training instead.

The scale of the planned changes carries significant political risk for Labour.

Last year, dozens of the party’s MPs rebelled over welfare reforms, though ministers believe weeks of behind-the-scenes persuasion have softened opposition.

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More than 40 leading charities wrote to Mr Milburn and Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden earlier this year, cautioning against tougher sanctions or cuts to support for disabled young people.

They argued such measures would drive thousands of vulnerable youngsters deeper into poverty.

Polling suggests the public favours tackling the root causes of joblessness over simply reducing benefits.

Mr Milburn himself acknowledged the political difficulties at a Labour conference fringe event on Monday, saying “when it comes to benefit cuts it will be tricky.”

A DWP spokesperson said the government would not pre-empt the findings of the Milburn and Timms reviews, adding: “We will always ensure there is a safety net for the most vulnerable and those who are unable to work.”