Why the social pain of welfare reform overshadows any economic gain

Posted on 21 March 2025 • Arts and social sciences, Society and politics

The UK government is calling it the “biggest shakeup to the welfare system in a generation” – prompted by what the Prime Minister described as the “devastating” cost of sickness and disability benefits. 

Alan Shipman, Senior Lecturer in Economics, writing in The Conversation, says planned reforms to cut those costs are designed to save £5 billion a year by 2030, from a welfare budget that will reach £70 billion on current projections.

Similar warnings about unsustainable welfare payments can be heard in other countries struggling with the rising costs of social security, state pensions and subsidised healthcare. Germany’s new chancellor thinks his country’s welfare system is wasteful and discourages full-time work. France, meanwhile, has been preparing for social security to absorb half the spending cuts it says it needs in 2025.

In some cases, their solvency can be calculated using projections of future claims, employment levels and demographic trends. On present predictions, for example, the US social security fund will “go broke” between 2033 and 2035. The Trump administration, while denying it will cut benefits, is promising to trim the bill with a clampdown on “fraud and waste”.

Read the full article on The Conversation

Picture credit: Joergelman from Pixabay