On 26th November 2024, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) published a new document: the Get Britain Working White Paper. White papers are policy documents published by the Government, which set out its positions on certain issues and outline any new proposals for/changes to existing legislation.
The Get Britain Working White Paper positions unemployment as a key reason for poor economic growth. The 68-page document explains why the Government is concerned about unemployment, and lays out plans to address it. While the document explores many issues, reducing unemployment on the basis of ill-health is a key area of focus. Many Disabled People’s Organisations are concerned about its content, as well as the Department’s lack of engagement with Disabled People’s Organisations prior to its publication.
It is important to note that, at this stage, these proposals are not set in stone. This is simply the Government outlining what it would like to do next. We will write again as soon as there are further developments.
What does the White Paper propose?
The White Paper sets out various visions for increasing employment rates — a key focus of this being reducing unemployment on the basis of ill-health (including mental ill-health).
The Government’s first step is to try and reduce ill-health in general, through a renewed emphasis on “prevention” and increasing access to healthcare. With regards to mental health, this includes adding 8,500 more mental health staff to the NHS, widening the Mental Health Teams programme within schools and to colleges, and investing more in the NHS Talking Therapies (formerly IAPT) programme. However, as we emphasised in our statement on the General Election, simply sending more staff into a failing mental health system is not enough.
While the White Paper does allude to some of the social determinants of mental ill-health and worsening work conditions, resolving them is not the focus. Instead, it concentrates on getting more people living with ill-health back to work in spite of the very problems it acknowledges.
Plans to increase employment rates among those living with ill-health include vast reforms to employment and careers support, such as developing a new digital service which merges Jobcentre Plus with the National Careers Service, and increasing employment support provision within the NHS Talking Therapies (formerly IAPT) programme. The paper also alludes to future reforms to Personal Independence Payments (PIP) and the Work Capability Assessment (WCA), but offers no new detail on either. Time will tell how the details of proposed reforms differ from those put forward by the Conservatives.
While some of the content of Labour’s proposed reforms may be new, the rhetoric remains worryingly similar to that of the previous Government. The fundamental logic remains the same: work is inherently good for mental health, and “economic inactivity” among the so-called mentally ill is bad for the economy (and therefore, society as a whole). We have written about the dangers of this logic before, and we will continue to do so, regardless of which party is in power.
What happens next?
Much to our disappointment, the White Paper does not contain the level of detail that we had hoped to see, and offers very little concrete information on how this government might resolve key issues affecting the lives of Disabled people and those living with mental ill-health, distress and trauma.
In terms of what we do know, there are two main promises contained in the White Paper.
Firstly, it commits to publishing a Green Paper in Spring 2025. A Green Paper is a consultation document published by the Government, which lays out specific proposals with the aim of getting feedback on policy or legislative changes. This Green Paper should offer more detail on the proposed reforms to mental health services and the social security system, including PIP and the WCA.
Secondly, the Get Britain Working White Paper states that the Department for Work and Pensions will establish a panel to consult Disabled people on proposed reforms, to ensure that “the view and voices of disabled people are put at the heart of design and delivery of our new reforms”.
NSUN will continue to monitor these reforms and publish an update as soon as we have more information, including a response to the consultation in Spring 2025.