Radical welfare reform to Get Britain Working

David Cameron has set out a package of measures designed to tackle the "twin crisis" of debt and unemployment facing Britain today.

The Conservative leader outlined plans for a massive programme to "Get Britain Working", which will form the centre piece of our Party Conference in Manchester:

• We will simplify Labour’s numerous and piecemeal programmes into one single back-to-work programme for everyone on out of work benefits.
• The Work Programme will include support back into work for the 2.6 million people claiming Incapacity Benefits currently excluded by Labour.
• We will abolish the Treasury’s rule that prevents the Government paying work providers using the benefits saved once someone has a job. This will allow us to offer support to the 2.6 million people on Incapacity Benefit.
• We will offer greater support to the young unemployed by referring them on to the Work Programme after 6 months of unemployment compared to a year under the Flexible New Deal.
• We will pay providers by results with a focus on truly sustainable outcomes and bigger rewards for getting the hardest to help into a job.

And we are also announcing:

• 50,000 work pairing places, on average, each year for young people, who will be assigned to sole traders for six months of meaningful work experience and mentoring.
• 100,000 additional apprenticeships and training places each year.
• 50,000 additional training places at FE colleges each year.
• Expansion of the government’s Young Apprenticeship (YA) scheme, from the current 10,000 to over 30,000 each year.

David said the measures were essential to tackle the problem of two and a half million people unemployed, with one in five young people unable to find a job, and he added:

"Labour are now the party of unemployment, I want the new Conservative Party to be the party of jobs and opportunity and at the heart of it is a big, bold and radical scheme to get millions of people back to work."