{"id":124727,"date":"2026-08-26T07:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-08-26T06:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/?p=124727"},"modified":"2026-08-26T02:13:16","modified_gmt":"2026-08-26T01:13:16","slug":"andy-burnham-breaks-silence-on-dwp-spending","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/andy-burnham-breaks-silence-on-dwp-spending\/","title":{"rendered":"Andy Burnham Breaks Silence on DWP Spending as Benefit Costs Climb Higher"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The comments come as Chancellor John Healey<\/strong> prepares to unveil his Budget on 28 October, with pressure from investors and analysts to maintain efforts to reduce the UK\u2019s fiscal deficit. The debate centres on the future cost of welfare payments and the government\u2019s approach to public spending.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Burnham Calls for Further Action on Welfare Spending<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Speaking about public assistance spending, Andy Burnham said the country must continue efforts to bring welfare costs down. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to get really serious as a country at getting the welfare down<\/em>,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Burnham also highlighted the role of support for people who need help returning to work. \u201cI think we need to continue down that approach and where mental health support is needed, for instance, it\u2019s provided in work to support people in an opportunity<\/em>,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The comments come as overall DWP welfare spending is forecast to reach \u00a3353bn<\/strong>, compared with \u00a3314bn when the Labour Party entered government in 2024. The figures reflect wider pressure on government finances as benefit payments continue to represent a significant area of public expenditure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), if inflation remains at 2.9 per cent into the autumn, the government would need to find an extra \u00a31.7bn from 2027-28 onwards if it increases benefits in line with price rises. Working-age benefits <\/strong>are normally adjusted using September\u2019s inflation figure. Before the rise in inflation linked to global events, the Office for Budget Responsibility had forecast inflation would be at 2.1 per cent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Andy Burnham\u2019s welfare plans face \u00a31.7bn DWP spending rise as benefit costs increase \u00a9 Shutterstock<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Inflation Outlook Adds Pressure to Budget Decisions<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The potential rise in benefit costs is linked to inflation<\/a>, which affects the annual uprating of payments. The IFS said that inflation at 2.9 per cent would also increase spending on public sector pensions by around \u00a30.7bn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The issue comes as John Healey faces decisions over taxation, spending and fiscal rules ahead of the October Budget<\/strong>. Investors have warned the government against easing measures aimed at reducing the deficit, amid concerns about public finances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Neil Mehta<\/a>, portfolio manager for investment grade at RBC BlueBay, said: \u201cFiscal rules can be reinterpreted to unlock more money, and so can the promise of spending cuts down the line. But where this government hangs is on credibility<\/em>.\u201d He added that inflation, spending and long-term investment would remain central issues for economic policy. \u201cInflation needs to be quashed, spending needs to be reined in and investment needs to be growth-enhancing in the long run<\/em>,\u201d Mehta said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the Treasury, fiscal discipline remains a central part of the government\u2019s approach. A spokesperson said: \u201cFiscal discipline is the bedrock of economic stability and national security<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Treasury also said the prime minister and chancellor were aligned on meeting fiscal rules, adding that the government was reducing the deficit faster than any other G7 economy and aiming to reach the lowest level in six years. The coming Budget will set out the government\u2019s next decisions on spending, including how it manages the rising costs associated with welfare payments and other areas affected by inflation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Andy Burnham has said the UK needs to \u201cget really serious\u201d about reducing welfare spending, as forecasts indicate that benefit payments could require an extra \u00a31.7bn from 2027-28 if inflation remains at current levels.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":124731,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[46],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-124727","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-social-welfare","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33","no-featured-image-padding"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/124727","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=124727"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/124727\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":124732,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/124727\/revisions\/124732"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/124731"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=124727"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=124727"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=124727"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}