• An illustration by Mariaelena Caputi showing a hand holding a small umbrella, a metaphor for the government's planned cuts to the welfare system with the risk of exposing the most vulnerable people.
  • An illustration by Mariaelena Caputi showing a hand holding a small umbrella, a metaphor for the government's planned cuts to the welfare system with the risk of exposing the most vulnerable people.

Britain’s worklessness mess

Nearly 3m Britons aged between 16 and 64 are not working because of poor health, up from just over 2m in 2019. That is a misery for them and a mystery to economists. No other rich country has seen a similar rise. Worklessness is a headache for the government, too. Can Labour get more people into jobs, and save money, without exposing the vulnerable?

  • An illustration by Mariaelena Caputi showing a hand holding a small umbrella, a metaphor for the government's planned cuts to the welfare system with the risk of exposing the most vulnerable people.
  • An illustration by Mariaelena Caputi showing a hand holding a small umbrella, a metaphor for the government's planned cuts to the welfare system with the risk of exposing the most vulnerable people.

Britain’s worklessness mess

Nearly 3m Britons aged between 16 and 64 are not working because of poor health, up from just over 2m in 2019. That is a misery for them and a mystery to economists. No other rich country has seen a similar rise. Worklessness is a headache for the government, too. Can Labour get more people into jobs, and save money, without exposing the vulnerable?