Liz Kendall: those who won’t take up work may lose benefits

The number of people not in work has increased significantly since the pandemic, and the government is preparing to cut costs through changes to the welfare system. On Sky News this morning, Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall was keen to stress that it was the government’s ‘responsibility to provide… new opportunities’ for young people who were out of work, training or education. Kendall told Trevor Phillips there is a ‘lifelong consequence’ when young people do not gain skills or work experience. When pushed by Phillips, Kendall admitted that under the new system, those who ‘repeatedly refuse to take up the training or work responsibilities’ would have ‘sanctions’ on their benefits.

Kendall: ‘it’s important we talk about what makes a good death’

As parliament prepares to vote on the Assisted Dying Bill, Liz Kendall told Laura Kuenssberg that she would vote in favour of the legislation because she believed the safeguards involved were strong enough.