One in five working-age adults on Universal Credit as figures reveal £80bn welfare spiral

ONE in five working-age adults are on Universal Credit as figures reveal the welfare bill has spiralled to more than £80billion. Statistics show that some 7.3million people between the ages of 20 and 64 are claiming the benefit as of May this year. Campaigns director at the TaxPayers’ Alliance, William Yarwood said dependence on Universal Credit had become ‘endemic’ Credit: TaxPayers’ Alliance The latest figures show the welfare bill has spiralled to a staggering £80billion. Credit: Getty Universal Credit, the main sickness and unemployment benefit, is a means-tested welfare payment that averages £1,090 a month. Analysis by the Taxpayers’ Alliance shows that 20.3 per cent of working age adults across England and Wales are now claiming. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! Out of that number, 3.3million claimants are under the age of 40 and “in the prime years of their careers”, the campaign group has said. The figures were highest in Blackpool, where more than one in three or 35.2 per cent of 20 to 64 year olds were claiming the benefit. Figures show there is now a record 8.5million Universal Credit claimants Credit: Getty Helen Whately, the shadow work and pensions secretary, said Britain can’t afford the bill Credit: Alamy Department for Work and Pensions figures show across England, Scotland and Wales, there were now a record 8.5million Universal Credit claimants. It brings the total welfare bill for Universal Credit across the UK to a staggering £80billion. Campaigns director at the TaxPayers’ Alliance, William Yarwood, said: “In some places, dependency on Universal Credit has become endemic. “Generations are being dumped on benefits: written off and condemned to a life of dependency as ministers make it harder for them to find a job. Most read in The Sun “If Andy Burnham was serious about growth in every postcode, he would be making it more affordable to hire young people.” The figures also showed that households containing foreign nationals received a record level of Universal Credit payments last year, totalling £11.9billion. Helen Whately, the shadow work and pensions secretary, has said that Britain “can’t afford” the ballooning bill. She added that it is “unfair to taxpayers footing the bill.” Both the Tories and Reform have called for a crackdown on the ballooning bill. The DWP said: “Three-quarters of the increase in universal credit cases since July 2024 is driven by people moving from legacy benefits — a transition started by the previous government. “Many people receiving universal credit are already in employment and our reforms will go further to tackle the perverse incentives that discourage work, and we’re investing £3.5 billion in employment support for disabled people and people with long-term conditions. “We’re putting work and opportunity at the heart of the system, and the final recommendations from the Timms and Milburn reviews will lay the foundation for sustainable reform.” It comes as Department for Work and Pensions data shows claims for Personal Independence Payment, known as PIP, have hit an all-time high of 4.1million. At the same time, the number of people on the health element of Universal Credit, which usually means claimants don’t have to work, has rocketed by 23% in just twelve months, climbing from around 2.9million to 3.5million. Together, that means almost one million more people have joined the sickness benefits system in a single year, taking the combined total to a staggering 7.6 million claims. PIP claims stood at just over 2million back in January 2019, but have surged every single month since, smashing through the 3million mark in 2022 and now sitting above 4million. The cost to the taxpayer has spiralled in line with the number of claimants. The soaring figures come after ministers were forced last year to scrap plans to reform disability benefits, including for people with mental health conditions, following a backbench Labour rebellion. Instead of pressing ahead with immediate changes, the Government set up the Timms review to gather evidence on how PIP works and whether it needs to change. Comment now