David Cameron has confirmed that a new Conservative government would cut the annual benefits cap to £23,000, a move that he suggests would prompt some households to break a dependency on welfare.
Mr Cameron claims the coalition’s introduction of a benefit cap of £26,000 per household had prompted “a stampede to the jobcentre”; the original cap was strongly opposed by Labour.
Now Mr Cameron wants to go further, confirmation of his belief that curbing welfare — especially high payments to individual households — is popular with many working voters.
The Tories claim the introduction of a £23,000 cap would save £135m a year — a relatively modest sum, but indicative of the wider scaling back of welfare intended by the party if it wins the election.
George Osborne, chancellor, wants to save £12bn from the annual welfare budget, with speculation that the Tories could limit child benefit to two children or remove the entitlement of younger people to housing benefit.
In an interview to mark 100 days until the general election, Mr Cameron told the Daily Telegraph that his reform of the welfare system was a “deeply progressive programme” that was “changing people’s lives”.
The new benefits cap — which will largely affect people living in London where housing costs are highest — would be introduced immediately after the election, the prime minister said. The plan was originally trailed last October.
The Liberal Democrats said Mr Cameron wanted to balance the books “on the backs of the working poor”. A spokesman added: “The Tories are reverting to type as we approach the election, and this is just the start.”
There are so many legal exemptions to the cap that it's practically meaningless.
