Campaigners urge government not to scapegoat benefit claimants

Over 60 support agencies have called on the government to curb their language when talking about benefit claimants.

Organisations signing an open letter included welfare charity Turn2us, human rights campaigners Amnesty International UK, and mental health charity Mind. Writing to the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, ahead of the October Budget, they said: “The way we talk about the social security system matters: it can be the difference between creating stigma or compassion.”

Earlier in the year, the Chancellor argued benefits spending was “out of control”, which campaigners described as “inaccurate”. 

They argued it feeds into blame culture. As a result, they said, claimants “tell us they’re scared of making a mistake, that they feel lost and helpless, and sometimes that they’ve given up on making a claim.“

“Just as we rely on the NHS, we should be proud of a social security system that’s fair, compassionate and there for us when we need it,” they said. 

Latest government figures reveal 6.4 million people receive Universal Credit, with four in ten of those in employment. Tax credits and housing benefit now come under Universal Credit, changing the nature of who is meant by ‘claimants’. 

Millions more will soon be added as those with health issues on Employment and Support Allowance migrate to the system.

Reeves’ Budget statement mirrored a softening of language around asylum seekers, compared to the previous government, in relation to benefits. “I can today announce a crackdown on fraud in our welfare system, often the work of criminal gangs,” she said. However, over 3,000 new staff will be recruited by DWP to investigate fraud and errors.

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