Prime Minister Rishi Sunak unveiled planned welfare reforms Friday to end Britain’s sick note culture, in an apparent pitch to keep his beleaguered Conservatives in power at an election due this year.
Sunak said the reforms were needed to tackle an unprecedented rise in economic inactivity and ensure benefits are better targeted, but they were immediately criticized by doctors and charities.
Just months out from an expected general election, the issue of people allegedly not working is traditionally safe political territory for Sunak’s embattled pro-business party that likes to depict its rivals as big spenders.
The Conservatives have trailed the Labour opposition by double-digit margins in opinion polls for nearly two years, amid widespread economic woes, a cost-of-living crisis, and Tory infighting.
