Answer from Hansard

The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Pat McFadden)

It is important that the welfare state is there to support disabled people. Too often in the past, disabled people have been signed off and written off. The state has paid benefits, but has not done enough to help disabled people into work, so we are now expanding employment support for the long-term sick and disabled through, among other things, the Connect to Work programme, which will deliver £1 billion for this purpose in supported employment over the next three years. We are also supporting the “Keep Britain Working” report by Sir Charlie Mayfield, which is aimed at keeping people in work through co-operation with employers.