Kemi Badenoch Criticised Over Welfare Cut Proposal

Kemi Badenoch has been condemned over an “unworkable” Tory plan to slash the benefits bill.

The Conservative leader said the long-term unemployed who haven’t contributed enough tax into the system will see their Universal Credit payments cut by nearly a third if she becomes prime minister.

The new “subsistence level” benefit they do receive would be loaded onto a pre-payment card, which would ban spending on cigarettes, alcohol and betting.

Badenoch said the policy was aimed at cracking down on those who see being on benefits as “a lifestyle choice” and would encourage them to get a job.

According to the Tories, the move would save £538 million a year by reducing the benefits of 350,000 claimants.

She said: “Some will say this is unfair on people claiming benefits. What is unfair is a system where someone who can work chooses not to and earns more from benefits than someone in a job.

“If you can work, you should work. Helping people into work is not punishment.

“The best welfare is a well-paid job. So, we will be tough on those who exploit the system because the current system is unfair to workers, taxpayers and those who truly need support.

“We should not be borrowing from our children and grandchildren to support people who simply refuse to work.

“Welfare must be a safety net for those who genuinely need it, not a lifestyle choice for those who can’t be bothered.”

But a Labour Party spokesperson said: “The Conservatives had 14 years to fix our welfare system but they completely failed to make meaningful reforms.

“Now they are proposing an unworkable new card scheme, which does nothing to tackle the numbers of people their system left signed off and written off.

“While the bill for the taxpayer rose by £33 billion in their last year in government, this Labour government is introducing effective and sustainable welfare reform alongside a £3.5 billion employment support package to help people stay in or return to work, and the national rollout of the jobs guarantee for young people who have been on universal credit.”

Reform UK Treasury spokesman Robert Jenrick, who defected from the Tories at the start of 2026, said Badenoch’s plans do not go far enough.

He said: “This welfare plan is so weak the Lib Dems could have authored it.

“The Tories left more people on long-term benefits and benefit fraud at record levels.

“Now they offer a spending card that won’t even put a dent in the coming £400 billion bill. It’s a sticking plaster on a wound they opened.”

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