World News – GB – Boris Johnson urged to start welfare revolution to protect vulnerable workers

Sir Iain Duncan Smith calls on the Prime Minister to put in place a £ 460million bailout in the face of mass unemployment triggered by the Covid crisis

Boris Johnson must launch second welfare revolution to save vulnerable workers from post-Covid ‘jobless tsunami’, said Sir Iain Duncan Smith

Former Tory chief and Universal Credit (UC) architect calls on PM to put in place £ 460million bailout from mass unemployment triggered by virus crisis

The « Universal Support » program would act as a comprehensive support service, run by local authorities, to help social assistance recipients overcome obstacles to their personal progress

Sir Iain, who founded the Center for Social Justice (CSJ) think tank in 2004, said the program would be part of the « second part » of welfare reforms he introduced as as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from 2010 to 2016

Drug and alcohol abuse, mental illness, homelessness and difficulties managing a household budget are among the obstacles identified by the CSJ in a report supporting the launch of the new measure

Writing in The Telegraph, Sir Iain said: « The jobs miracle of the past decade has ended But universal credit is not the end of the story of welfare reform. government must now recognize that, more than ever, universal credit must be coupled with universal support, creating a truly compassionate social security system that helps change lives for the better »

The UC has helped around six million unemployed people access the benefit system and receive financial support

CSJ report follows widespread concern over ‘jobless tsunami’ expected to hit country when leave program ends in October Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) predicted worst-case scenario cases of four million unemployed

Although UC has faced a sharp increase in demand for financial support, the proposed upgrade is expected to make it more effective for more disadvantaged job seekers, who often lack the physical and mental resilience to find and keep work

The CSJ has claimed that the current employment support system is a confusing patchwork of different programs that fails to understand this reality

The work program has been replaced by an underfunded work and health program in combination with various other services such as intensive personalized employment assistance, individual placement and support and the program for families in difficulty

The think tank said evidence from overseas and the UK suggests personalized support programs, such as the new « Universal Support 20 » described in its study, are best for helping the most vulnerable in society to return to work

The new document cites various case studies of charities showing how Universal Support can work on the ground

BEAM, for example, which uses crowdfunding technology to raise funds for the homeless and helps them find skilled employment, has successfully grown to attract the attention of 39 service partners in across London and saw three quarters of its beneficiaries support working for more than three months

The CSJ recommended spending £ 460m on the program, guaranteed for five years until 2025-2026, and ensuring that universal support delivery partners are engaged by local authorities, with performance measured against a new set of criteria including mental and social well-being -being

It is suggested that the Department of Work and Pensions and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government jointly manage the project using key works independent of UC and DWP

Andy Cook, chief executive of CSJ, said: « Britain faces prospect of ‘jobless tsunami’ at the end of October The CSJ’s proposals are a very important step towards resolving this crisis

« Universal Credit has performed well over the past decade, and with the economic consequences of foreclosure on the horizon, there has never been a better time to update the system by introducing Universal Support »

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Iain Duncan Smith, UK, Boris Johnson