Tories Pledge 'Tough Love' Benefit Rules for Under-25s Ahead of Party Conference
Kemi Badenoch, leader of the Conservative Party, has branded the new under-25s welfare plan 'tough love'. (Official Cabinet Office portrait, 2022, via Wikimedia Commons) The Conservatives have announced sweeping new work requirements for unemployed young people, saying under-25s who are fit to work should be barred from claiming benefits straight out of school. The plan, announced on Thursday ahead of the party's conference in Birmingham this weekend, would replace Universal Credit for the age group with a compulsory six-month "Get to Work" scheme. Key facts The policy would apply to 18 to 24-year-olds who are fit to work and have not worked continuously for at least six months, for a minimum of 16 hours a week. Instead of standard Universal Credit, they would join a six-month "Get to Work" scheme and receive a "Get to Work Allowance" paid at the same rate. Payments would be conditional on daily attendance at a job centre, work experience...