Source · Select Committees · Work and Pensions Committee
Recommendation 1
1
Accepted
Increased health-related welfare spending coincides with falls in non-health, non-pensioner welfare spending.
Conclusion
We agree that recent increases in spending on health-related welfare, as well as future spending projections, are concerning, but at the same time, we cannot ignore the fact that spending on non-health related, non-pensioner welfare has fallen, especially given the possibility that the increase in the first might be partly the result of the reduction in the second. (Conclusion, Paragraph 25)
Government response summary AI-generated
The government committed to an above-inflation increase in the Universal Credit standard allowance, legislated through the Universal Credit Act (September 2025), and a reduction in the UC health element for new claimants from April 2026, with standard allowance rates to be kept under review.
Summary of the government's response below — read the verbatim text to verify.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government · verbatim extract
Accepted
The structure of the UK’s Health and Disability benefit system needs reform to improve employment outcomes and tackle rising expenditure. All major economies have seen rising prevalence in long-term health conditions and disability, but the UK is an international outlier in terms of its impact on benefits. UK spending on disability benefits has increased by over 30% since the pandemic, whilst over the same period, across 11 similar countries, all but one have seen stable or falling spends on their nearest equivalent benefits2.
Read the full response on Parliament ↗