There are around 1 million young people not in education, employment or training in the UK, and more than 9 million people classed as economically inactive. So all eyes will be on Andy Burnham and John Healey this month to find out how the Government plans to help more people into work.
I’ve always believed in hard work; in ambition; in getting up in the morning with a sense of purpose and believing that, whatever your circumstances, you have the potential to create a better future for yourself.
And I want my children to grow up in an aspirational country. One where success is celebrated, hard work is rewarded and people are encouraged to go out and make life happen for themselves, rather than waiting for life to happen to them.
But I also know that not everybody starts from the same place. We don’t all have the same opportunities, the same health, education or support networks. And sometimes, through absolutely no fault of our own, life takes away our ability to work.
Which is why the conversation about getting Britain back to work needs to be about more than simply reducing the benefits bill.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has proposed tougher conditions for some people receiving unemployment benefits, including reduced payments after six months for certain claimants who are considered fit for work.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister has spoken about investing earlier in people’s futures, creating more opportunities for young people through work placements, apprenticeships and better support, including for mental health.
There are important questions to ask about both approaches. How do we encourage people who can work to do so? How do we ensure work genuinely pays? And how do we protect people who simply aren’t in a position to earn a living? For me, this isn’t just a political debate – it’s personal.
After my attack, there was a period when working simply wasn’t possible for me. My recovery was long, complicated and uncertain. I had lost so much of my independence, and rebuilding my health and my life had to come before rebuilding my career. During that time, I received benefits and they were a lifeline.
I didn’t lack ambition and I hadn’t lost my work ethic. I desperately wanted to return to some kind of normality. But wanting to work and being physically capable of working are two very different things.
That financial support gave me some security during an incredibly vulnerable period. It was part of the bridge that eventually allowed me to return to work and rebuild my independence. And that’s something I never want us to forget when discussing welfare reform.
We need to make working pay. The universal credit taper, which reduces a claimant’s benefit payment by 55p for every £1 they earn above their allowance, can be a real disincentive to work more hours, for example.
Talk about limiting the way in which benefits can be spent is worrying, and an idea that should be firmly off the table in my opinion.
And what about more help for those mid-lifers who are made redundant or want to retrain? It’s not just 16-year-olds that need apprenticeships – we should provide a springboard for older people who might otherwise be forced out of work.
A benefits system shouldn’t trap people in dependency, but neither should it punish them for needing help.
The Government should make returning to work easier – not just make being out of work harder. That means better access to rehabilitation, mental health services, retraining and flexible employment. It means supporting employers to give people opportunities, particularly those returning after illness, disability or a long career break.
At the Katie Piper Foundation, which supports people with burns or traumatic scarring, I see frequently how much people want to rebuild their independence after life-changing injuries. But I also see the barriers that can stand between wanting to work and being ready to work.
Sometimes, what someone needs isn’t another instruction to find a job. It’s the right rehabilitation, an understanding employer, an accessible workplace or simply more time.
And we need to talk about aspiration. We should be encouraging young people to believe that employment can bring more than a payslip. Work can give us confidence, structure, friendships, independence and a sense of belonging.
But that aspiration needs to be matched by opportunity. Affordable childcare, accessible transport, training and jobs that pay enough to live on aren’t luxuries. They’re part of what makes employment possible.
I don’t believe encouraging ambition and showing compassion are opposing values. If anything, they belong together.
I want a Britain where people who can work are encouraged and supported to do so; where effort is recognised, opportunity is available and nobody is written off before they’ve had the chance to succeed.
But equally, I want a Britain where people who genuinely need financial support can access it without shame or fear. Because I know from personal experience that needing help today doesn’t mean you won’t have something extraordinary to contribute tomorrow.
The measure of a successful welfare system shouldn’t simply be how many people we take off benefits. It should be how many people we help build better lives, while protecting those who still need us.