00:00Let's talk about the Prime Minister. Does he have to consider his position, West Streeting?
00:04We've got yet another screeching U-turn on benefits after the screeching U-turn on the winter fuel,
00:10a screeching U-turn on grooming gangs.
00:13Keir Starmer doesn't really know what he's doing, does he?
00:18Well, I don't agree with that. And by the way, I mean, you look at a couple of the interviews the Prime Minister's done today,
00:23one of the things I respect and like about the guy is when things go wrong, when he makes mistakes,
00:29he's honest about it, takes responsibility for it, learns from it and most importantly puts it right.
00:34And that's what we've done on welfare this week. We're in a better place today than we were this time last week.
00:43And look, it's not all been plain sailing and I'm not going to pretend for a moment that we haven't made mistakes,
00:48nor does the Prime Minister. But there are also things we've gotten right in the first year of this Labour government.
00:53There are examples where this country is moving in the right direction.
00:56I know, we don't want a party political broadcast.
00:59I want to ask people is to balance out and think about the ups and the downs.
01:03No, but, you know, I think it's fair to say that for the mistakes we've made, we've also done a lot of good.
01:08There's much more to do.
01:09Two points there. You're saying you're tackling benefits. Well, you're not, are you?
01:13The benefits bill has gone up by £86 billion in a decade.
01:16Because of this U-turn, you're now shaving a mere £2 billion off it.
01:20And by the way, the benefits bill will still be higher at the end of the Parliament than it is now.
01:25So you're not tackling benefits at all, are you?
01:31Well, we are. And one of the important ways we will be reducing the benefit bill is by getting people who can work and therefore should work back to work,
01:39whether through providing employment support or, in my case, with the NHS, making sure that people who are off work, off sick,
01:47making sure that we're cutting waiting lists so they're not just back to health, they're also able to go back to work.
01:53Can we agree, can we agree, the benefits bill is going to be higher at the end of this Parliament than it is now?
02:01So any talk of cuts to benefits is actually just a barefaced lie?
02:05Well, that is a fact you've just stated, that we will be paying more for the welfare system at the end of this Parliament than we do today.
02:15It's one of the reasons why this government is determined to reform the system, to make it sustainable.
02:21And that's the context in which we've been having this debate.
02:24Of course, we've got to tread carefully in this issue of support for disabled people,
02:28because there will be lots of people who, through no fault of their own, simply cannot work.
02:33Those people deserve and are entitled to a good level of income.
02:38Those people who can work should work.
02:41And those are the principles that lie at the heart of this system.
02:44I think where you've seen the debate with Labour MPs this week is being driven by the fact that what we all fear,
02:50including ministers, is you don't want someone coming to your advice surgery on a Friday saying,
02:54look, this is my situation, and your reforms have actually impacted negatively on me.
02:58And we're sitting there thinking, but that wasn't supposed to happen to you.
03:01So we want to get this right.
03:03And OK, this week could have been smoother, not going to make any bones about that.
03:07But are we in a better place, having debated with each other, listened to each other, found a way through?
03:13Yes, we are in a better position.
03:14And there'll be lots of disabled people watching this morning, I suspect, on PIP,
03:18who've now got the peace of mind of knowing their situation is not going to change, they'll be protected.
03:21Well, weirdly, there were the PIP changes to actual disabled people and people with debilitating conditions like chronic arthritis.
03:28No changes at all in anyone claiming for mental health problems.
03:32Now, I completely understand the need to claim PIP if you are so incapacitated by chronic depression that you cannot leave your house.
03:41Why on earth are people claiming PIP for mild depression, mild, and I stress mild autism, and conditions like ADHD?
03:51Well, we will be looking at those issues as we reform the welfare system and also are making inroads on mental health.
04:00You know, remember, we promised eight and a half thousand more mental health workers at the general election.
04:05We're already well on the way to living that.
04:07We're at six and a half thousand at the moment, and there'll be more mental health support available.
04:11So that was partly my responsibility to get that bill down by making sure that people have got that mental health and well-being support
04:20to make sure that people can live happy lives and healthy lives and fulfilling lives without relying on the benefit system.
Comments