PM promises crackdown on cheats to tackle benefits bill

Sir Keir Starmer has promised "zero tolerance" for benefits cheats as Labour seeks to tackle Britain's ballooning welfare bill.

- KATE DEVLIN

The prime minister warned those who try to "take advantage of state generosity will feel the force of the law" and that ministers would even "take cash straight from the banks of fraudsters".

His vow came as ministers prepare to unveil “tough” changes to the welfare system later this week. Work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall said yesterday that young people who repeatedly refuse to take up jobs or training would lose their benefits.

Writing for The Mail on Sunday, the Labour leader pledged the public would see “sweeping changes. Because make no mistake, we will get to grips with the bulging benefits bill blighting our society.”

Labour has said it will stick by a Tory commitment to slash the cost of the welfare bill by £3bn over five years, although Sir Keir also promised not to “call people shirkers or go down the road of division” – a dig at previous Conservative governments.

Ms Kendall is to set out her plans in detail later this week, but yesterday warned of “tough” action ahead as she said that if young people “repeatedly refuse to take up the training or work responsibilities, there will be sanctions on their benefits”. Asked if this meant losing those benefits, she told Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “Yes.”