Iain Duncan Smith is a man with a lot of responsibility on his shoulders.
As Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for the British Government, he oversees the allocation of state support to the more than five million people on out of work benefits in the UK.
Mr Smith has not settled for being a mere steward of the policies of the past, or for making “eye-catching tweaks around the edges.”
Instead, he is reforming what welfare actually does for the needy and the goals and incentives of the system.
In delivering the 2011 Sir John Graham Lecture for Maxim Institute, he reminded the audience of the words of William Beveridge, the architect of modern welfare in Britain, who “was clear that the welfare system must not be allowed to stifle incentive, opportunity or responsibility.”
Responsibility and opportunity are key drivers to what Mr Smith believes will bring people out of inter-generational worklessness and dependence on the provision of the state.
One of the guiding visions for his welfare reforms is “a society where responsibility for yourself, your family, and your community is seen as a valuable commodity once more.”
Many of those on welfare have been out of work “for 10 years or more” and this long-term reliance on the state reduces the incentive and ability to re-enter the workforce because of a lack of work-ready skills, and the severe drop off in their benefit once they start work.
Getting the incentives to work is crucial, he said, as people need to redevelop “the notion that it pays to be in work, and that it pays to do more hours when you work.”
One of his plans is to fund ways to help young people to become fit for employment.
Speaking to business owners, Mr Smith identified that the main barriers to work for many is not a lack of skills training, but the fact that they have never had working life modelled to them.
He said that employers want young people to “know what it is like to turn up and do a day’s work; dressed in the right clothes and having the right attitude, prepared to get on with the work.”
In order to facilitate this, Mr Smith is providing 140,000 new apprenticeships, 40,000 specifically for young people, and a programme of work experience placements.
“If a business is prepared to give someone two months work experience, I will pay for that. If they say they will take them on, or if they are prepared to give them an apprenticeship, I will pay for the third month too … All of that is about changing an attitude [towards work] which comes from the community in which they live.”
The statistics of poverty and brokenness in the UK seem overwhelming, but Mr Smith has taken on the challenge with an understanding of both the financial obstacles, and the human stories of hurt, need and resilience behind the figures.
And remarkably, he indicates that there is now widespread support for the changes, with the vast majority of people in the UK seeing the possible benefits.
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