I was pleased to see the Prime Minister talk about the need for welfare reform on Friday. Whilst it is important that there is a safety net for those who genuinely need it, we must also be fair to hard-working taxpayers. And there’s no sustainable way to bring down migration levels without giving more of our own people off welfare and back into work. The number of ‘fit notes’ issued by GPs doubled from 5 million in 2015 to over 11m last year. As a country, we now spend more on benefits for people of working age with a disability or health condition than we do on much needed defence or policing spend. Given the threats which our society faces, that makes no long-term sense, and this is a nettle which needs to be grasped.
I was one of a small number to vote against the ban on smoking last week. To be clear, I was not against all the measures in the Bill. The two elements which had my full support were reducing the appeal and availability of vapes to children and strengthening enforcement activity and sanctions in respect of underage tobacco sales. But the ‘ban’ is not about protecting children – they are already banned. It was about banning for their entire life people who will be adults. The structure of the ban had one troubling aspect. By applying to only those born after an arbitrary date, it would see one generation voting to curtail the liberty of another – whilst continuing to enjoy those same freedoms itself. With an ageing population and great pressure on our over-centralised healthcare system, what if one day Parliament passed laws to withhold certain medicines from older people? Or if it was proposed that future new driving licences be restricted to electric cars. I should wish to oppose such measures and not to have conceded the principle now that all be treated equal under the laws passed by Parliament.
