It might seem hard to believe when the country faces such stark shortages of skilled workers to do vital jobs, but nationwide there are 2.5 million people out of work due to long-term ill-health, with the estimated cost to the taxpayer running into the billions.
And there's a regional angle too, as workers in the North West are much more likely to be forced out of the labour market by sickness as people in the South East.
But a consensus is growing that the current system for getting people off benefits and into work - driven by Whitehall officials in central London and based on assessments that many fear encourages people to prove they are too ill to work - isn't working.
