Leicester MP Liz Kendall unveils plans to 'get Britain working again'

Leicester West MP Liz Kendall has announced her £240 million scheme which she said aimed to get more people working. She described it as the biggest employment support reform in a generation.

The "Get Britain Working" policy ideas include plans to target young unemployed people and get them into apprenticeships or other learning schemes and to increase mental health support through 8,500 new staff.

There is also a plan to cut waiting lists for people with anxiety, depression and other conditions by providing help for 140,000 more people per year by 2029. The East Midlands will be among eight youth ‘trailblazer’ areas to get £45 million funding to match young people with training and education opportunities, she said.

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Ms Kendall, who is the work and pensions secretary, said: “To get Britain growing, we need to get Britain working again. Our reforms will break down barriers to opportunity, help people to get into work and on at work, allow local leaders to boost jobs and growth, and give our children and young people the best opportunities to get on in life.

“The Get Britain Working White Paper shows that this government stands unashamedly for work. We will make sure everyone, regardless of their background, age, ethnicity, health, disability or postcode can benefit from the dignity and purpose work can bring.

“We can build a healthier, wealthier nation – driving up employment and opportunity, skills and productivity – while driving down the benefit bill.”

The aim is to slash jobless numbers in various areas. According to the government, the worrying statistics about employment in the UK include:

• Almost 1.15 million working age people are registered "unemployed"

• More than 9 million people are "inactive", including a record 2.8 million with long-term sickness

• One in eight young people are not in work, training or education

• An estimated 9 million adults lack the skills they need to succeed in modern jobs

• The UK is the only major economy to see its employment rate fall over the last five years

The government has said the "outdated" Jobcentre system will be transformed into a new national jobs and careers service, focused on people’s skills and careers instead of just monitoring and managing benefit claims. Mayors and councils will get new powers to join up local work, health and skills support.

However, the proposals were panned by political opponents, policy experts and industry bodies as not nearly enough to deal with Britain’s workforce crisis, reported the Express. The Centre for Social Justice think tank condemned the package as “nowhere near enough, not fast enough”, warning it does little to avoid the forthcoming iceberg, the newspaper said.