Chancellor George Osborne has said that a further £25 billion of cuts would be needed after the next election, with young people a particular focus of the suggested welfare savings.
George Osborne had the pleasant experience of announcing upward revisions to previous forecasts in his Autumn Statement., but as partially acknowledged by the chancellor, underneath the initial positive signs are some more worrying developments.
Chancellor George Osborne is updating MPs on the current state of the UK economy and the government’s future plans.
The omnipresent slogan at the Conservative party conference, ‘for hardworking people’, reflects the belief that hard work is the proper way of living one’s life and the route to economic success. The rhetoric of George Osborne and his colleagues around hardworking people is not new but it remains regressive in its effects, not least in ignoring the real hardships faced by those who work hard for a living. David Spencer argues that there are other areas of life that matter to our well-being and allowing work to dominate us can only lead to harm.
Chancellor George Osborne has unveiled a controversial plan to extend the “work for benefits” scheme where the long-term unemployed would need to take up work placements in return for their benefits.