He described free riding on the benefit system as “an insult” to those contributing to it via taxes and those in genuine need. The government wants to see 1 million of the 2.6 million people on incapacity benefit return to meaningful employment and 300,000 of the 760,000 lone parents on benefit.

They have asked David Freud – the author of the Freud Report published in March 2007 - to be an adviser which is intriguing because his report was largely discounted by the then Chancellor of the Exchequer – Gordon Brown.

The suggested mechanisms for getting people back to work include skills checks and training and an increase in availability of work place apprenticeships.

The Conservative Party have proposed their own mix of schemes to tackle worklessness including sanctions on claimants that refuse jobs; time limited benefits; compulsory community work for the long term unemployed and extra screening for those on incapacity benefits with those deemed fit for work transferred to the less generous job seekers allowance (JSA).

Despite a decade of growth creating an additional 2.7 million jobs in the UK there has been very little reduction in the numbers claiming JSA and lone parents allowance and the numbers of incapacity benefit has remained unchanged. There are 500,000 incapacity benefit claimants who are under the age of 35.