After the General Election in 2010 the coalition Government inherited a broken welfare system and a something for nothing benefits culture. So it set about capping benefits so that no out-of-work household can claim more than the average working family earns. I believe this is right and fair.
Regrettably the main party of opposition have continually opposed this cap and seemingly believe that out-of-work households should be able to claim more than £26,000 a year in benefits and live in houses that hard working people cannot afford.
It is a fact that under the last Government workless households increased dramatically with nobody working in 1 in 5 households. Also despite there being almost 2 million households on the social housing waiting list in England the tax payer is subsidising nearly 1 million extra bedrooms through Housing Benefit payments.
For most people work is the most sustainable way out of poverty so we must do all we can to get people back to work. We must never again return to the situation where 5 million people were on out-of-work benefits and ending the something for nothing culture in this country is long overdue. This Government will always be there to support those who need help but the days of blank cheque benefits are over. This cap on benefits is a key part of the Government’s plan to fix the welfare system so that it no longer traps people in a cycle of dependency and is fair for hardworking taxpayers who pay for it.