| Making welfare work |
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| Written by Tom Clougherty | |
| Sunday, 04 November 2007 | |
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The ASI's latest report, Working Welfare, is released today. It has already been sent to the government in reponse to their consultation paper 'In work, better off: next steps to full employment', which was published in July. The problem with welfare policy in this country is governments of various complexions, lacking any coherent vision of what welfare should aim to achieve, have merely shuffled the rules and tweaked a system that is socially toxic to many of its recipients. Tinkering has been the order of the day. However, as our report's author, Katharine Hirst, points out: "Gradual change may appear to be a step in the right direction, but can also create confusion and contradictory pressures rather than improving things. The time has come for a radical overhaul of the benefits system." The purpose of Working Welfare is to show a clear vision of what welfare should be like in future, and to set out the stages by which it can be taken there. Inspired by the successful American reforms of the 1990s, our latest proposals make work central to welfare: all working age people not meeting national disability criteria would face immediate work requirements, backed up by tough sanctions. No work would mean no benefits, and any absence from mandated work without good cause would trigger a pro rata reduction in payments. The proposals in Working Welfare would also revolutionize the delivery of welfare. Responsibility for its provision and administration would be devolved to local agencies, which would be paid according to results. Agencies would be rewarded for getting people into work for a set period of time, ensuring an ongoing and personalized service for jobseekers. The report also advocates raising the personal income tax allowance to £12,000, to tackle high effective marginal tax rates for those trying to enter the workforce, and to make life easier for those with low incomes. Read the whole report here.
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