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Lord Clarke of Nottingham (Con)

Speaking in the House of Lords on 28 April 2026

Debate

Middle East: Economic Update

Contribution

My Lords, one of the big problems that the Government faced when they took office was an unsustainable level of public debt and a totally unsustainable level of debt interest being paid by taxpayers each year on that debt. The Government saw clearly at the time that one thing they had to do was to stop the welfare budget exploding as it is and increasing so rapidly. They introduced some modest measures, which they then dropped as soon as they faced discontent from left-wing Back-Benchers in the House of Commons. Do the Government intend to allow the welfare bill to increase by the hundreds of billions of pounds forecast at the moment? Do they intend to do nothing to alter the financial incentives, which they have made better for large families, not to seek work if they have established a good claim to benefits? These are major national problems that really ought to be tackled in the face of this worrying economic position, and the Government, almost two years into office, seem to be slipping into inaction, with a complete lack of leadership, allowing Back-Benchers in the House of Commons to leave the problem to fester.

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