Today the government has launched a White Paper, “Get Britain Working,” setting out a cross-government approach to address employment gaps and enhance job opportunities.
You can access the White Paper here.
The paper, presented by Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) Secretary of State Liz Kendall, aims to integrate health, education, skills, and investment to help people return to work or start new employment.
In an interview on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme this morning, Alison McGovern MP, Minister of State at DWP, discussed the need for funded, pragmatic decisions to tackle the cost of living and improve the lives of working people. McGovern highlighted that this White Paper builds on comments from Chancellor Rachel Reeves at yesterday’s CBI Annual Conference, where the focus was placed on driving investment and skills development to close the unemployment gap.
McGovern confirmed that the White Paper’s primary focus is to make better use of job centres by identifying and addressing gaps in the labour market, alongside the introduction of a “youth guarantee” for younger job seekers. However, the White Paper has drawn criticism over the government’s stance on young people refusing job opportunities. Under the new scheme, young people who turn down offers will face benefit cuts. McGovern defended the approach, stating, “there are rules in the system that people have to follow.” When pressed by the presenter about the appeal process for those who refuse offers, McGovern explained that decisions would be made at the job centres.
The Minister also took the opportunity to criticise the previous Conservative government’s handling of the pandemic, stating that the “pandemic generation [were] failed.” She indicated that the government would learn from the current COVID inquiry once it concluded. On the topic of work assessments, McGovern emphasised that the “tick and turn culture” must end, referring to the quick 10-minute work assessment interviews that often resulted in people being turned away without adequate support.
In response, the Conservatives via Helen Whatley, Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, accused the government of evading the difficult decisions required to effectively get people back into work.
The Get Britain Working White Paper in detail
● The government has unveiled plans to invest £125m across eight regions in England and Wales, aiming to link NHS treatment for the long-term sick with local employment and skills programmes. The goal is to focus treatment on keeping people in work, ensuring that those affected by health issues are supported in their ability to remain employed. Much of the plan will be trialled in pilot schemes across the country, with consultations planned for next year on further reforms to the health and disability benefits system.
● The White Paper outlines the investment in local initiatives, with a particular emphasis on NHS accelerators in three of the pilot areas, which will work to prevent people from falling out of work due to ill health. There will be 16 trailblazers including in West Yorkshire, the North East, South Yorkshire, York and North Yorkshire, Greater Manchester, two in London and one in Wales. The youth trailblazers will be in Liverpool, West Midlands, Tees Valley, East Midlands, West of England, Cambridgeshire & Peterborough and two in London.
● Job centres across Great Britain will undergo a significant overhaul, with the integration of the National Careers Service in England, supported by an additional £55m investment.
● The government also plans to introduce a radically improved digital service. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will use the latest technologies and AI to provide jobseekers with up-to-date information on available jobs, skills development, and other support, while also allowing work coaches more time to focus on individual needs.
● Job centre staff will gain more flexibility to offer a more personalised service, stepping away from the current “tick box” culture. New coaching academies will be established to help Jobcentre staff better support people in finding work.
● Alongside these changes, testing and digital design will be undertaken to assess how DWP services can be delivered online more effectively, providing tailored support to jobseekers.
● In a move aimed at improving workplace inclusion, the government will launch an independent review to determine how employers can be better supported to hire and retain people with disabilities, creating pathways for dignity, purpose, and financial independence.
● The White Paper also sets out plans to overhaul the health and disability benefits system, with an aim to better support people in entering and staying in work. This initiative comes in response to the growing benefits bill. A consultation on these reforms will be published in spring 2025.
● Further funding has been allocated to the Department of Health and Social Care, with £22.6bn earmarked for 2025-26 to support NHS services in England. This funding will help deliver an additional 40,000 elective appointments per week, as the government aims to meet its target of reducing waiting times to no more than 18 weeks from referral to consultant-led treatment.
● The government also plans to expand mental health services, with the recruitment of 8,500 new staff and increased access to Individual Placement and Support (IPS) for severe mental illness. By 2028/29, the scheme aims to reach 140,000 more people. A “prevention-first” approach has been outlined, including an expansion of Talking Therapies, a new Tobacco and Vapes Bill, and a range of measures to tackle obesity.