Chancellor is accused of “deprioritising health” in autumn statement

Directors of public health have urged UK ministers to do more to improve health in people of working age, warning that “punitive” moves to end people’s access to benefits could “do more harm than good.”The chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, announced a clampdown on benefits as part of his autumn financial statement to the House of Commons on 22 November,1 which some analysts said “neglected the gravity” of the crisis facing health and care services.Hunt said that claimants who had still not found employment after seeking a job for 18 months would have to take part in a mandatory work placement “to increase their skills and improve their employability.” He said that, for those who chose not to engage with the work search process for six months, “we will close their case and stop their benefits.”Hunt was expanding on the “back to work plan” announced earlier this month, intended to help people…
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