Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Alicja Hagopian,David Maddox and Albert Toth

Welfare in numbers: The facts behind Britain’s soaring benefits bill

Britain’s welfare bill has ballooned, with 23 per cent of the working-age population now in receipt of some form of benefits, figures analysed by The Independent reveal.

Labour has branded the spiralling costs of a life on sickness benefits “unsustainable” and has vowed to clamp down by slashing the budget by £5bn.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.