Rishi Sunak wants to strip family doctors of their power to sign people off work as part of a plan to tackle what he calls the UK "sick note" culture. His comments have sparked anger among unions and health charities.
ADVERTISEMENTRich Sunak's comments come as the percentage of employed working-age Britons is at its lowest point since 2015, reportedly due to a surge in people on long-term sick leave as well as an increase in the number of students. By comparison, other major wealthy nations have experienced a rise in employment since 2020.
Now, PM Rishi Sunak has revealed plans to change long-term sick leave rules to help more people remain at work.
"If you are feeling anxious or depressed, then of course you should get the support and treatment you need to manage your condition. But that doesn't mean we should assume you can't engage in work," Sunak told an audience at the Centre for Social Justice in London in a speech on welfare reforms.
"That's not going to help you. And it's not fair on everyone else either. So we are going to tighten up the Work Capability Assessment."
According to official data, 9.4 million Britons aged 16 to 64, which is 22% of that age group, are neither working nor unemployed. This number has increased from 8.55 million just before the pandemic. Among them, 2.8 million are long-term sick, and 206,000 are temporarily ill.
The Prime Minister said welfare benefits in the United Kingdom had become a "lifestyle choice" for some, causing a "spiralling" welfare bill for the country.
He said: "We need to be more ambitious about helping people back to work and more honest about the risk of over-medicalising the everyday challenges and worries of life."
The PM highlighted the current system's economic unsustainability, noting that more funds were allocated to supporting working-age individuals with illness or disability than essential sectors like education, transportation, or law enforcement.
He pledged reforms, suggesting that individuals with mental health conditions receiving Personal Independence Payments (PIP) might be offered treatment instead of benefits.
Britain's budget watchdog revealed last year that a quarter of absences from work due to long-term sickness were awaiting medical treatment. More than half of those on long-term sick leave reported experiencing "depression, bad nerves, or anxiety", although for many, it was a secondary concern alongside their primary health issue.
The speech has drawn criticism from health charities and unions.
"We are deeply disappointed that the Prime Minister's speech today continues a trend in recent rhetoric which conjures up the image of a "mental health culture" that has "gone too far", the chief executive of mental health charity Mind, Dr Sarah Hughes said.
"This is harmful, inaccurate and contrary to the reality for people up and down the country. The truth is that mental health services are at breaking point following years of under investment with many people getting increasingly unwell while they wait to receive support (...) It is insulting to the 1.9 million people on a waiting list to get mental health support, and to the GPs whose expert judgement is being called into question."
