Extra NHS capacity and Jobcentre reforms at heart of Labour’s plan to ‘get Britain working’
Jobcentre reform will be at the centre of the Labour government’s plans to “get Britain working again”.
Tackling the increasing number of people out of work and relying on the state for income has become a major priority of the state, with welfare costs taking up a sizeable portion of government spending.
According to the government, more than nine million people are economically inactive, with 2.8 million on long-term sickness – a number which has risen significantly since the pandemic.
The government will today be publishing its plans to get more people into employment in the form of the Get Britain Working white paper.
The government says its main aim is “to target and tackle the root causes of unemployment and inactivity, and better join up health skills and employment support based on the unique needs of local communities”.
Ill health is noted as the “biggest driver to inactivity”, and “fixing the NHS” is identified as a key task to get people back into work.
The government also points out that £22.6bn was promised in the budget for the health and social care system, with hopes that clearing NHS backlogs will return unwell people to the workforce.
The government says it will in future announce measures to “overhaul the health and disability benefits system so it better supports people to enter and remain in work and to tackle the spiralling benefits bill”.
As part of this, the 20 NHS trusts in England with the highest level of economic inactivity will be given extra capacity to reduce waiting lists.
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‘The benefits system can incentivise and disincentivise work’
Liz Kendall, the secretary of state for the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), said: “To get Britain growing, we need to get Britain working again.
“Our reforms will break down barriers to opportunity, help people to get into work and on at work, allow local leaders to boost jobs and growth, and give our children and young people the best opportunities to get on in life.”
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£240m for reforms
Key among the plans announced today are changes to Jobcentres – with a potential for the service to be rebranded and the name changed down the line.
The “outdated” system will be changed into a “national jobs and careers service”, according to today’s announcement.
The government says staff will be allowed more flexibility to help users of the service, moving away from the current “tick box” culture.
Some £55m will be spent on the transition – linking the scheme with the National Career Service – with the government hoping to use AI to help work coaches, and move more services online.
This package forms part of a greater £240m being pledged by Labour for reform.
A £125m tranche of this will be used to invest in eight areas in England and Wales to provide work, health and skills support, which will then be used as blueprints for the rest of the country.
Those not part of these schemes will be able to claim part of a £15m pot, with the government aiming to hand local authorities more power in employment.
Sir Keir, centre, and Ms Kendall, second left, say they want to get more people into work. Pic: PA
Some £45m will be spent on eight “trailblazer” youth schemes in areas like Liverpool, Tees Valley and the East Midlands.
This is part of the government’s plans to increase the number of young people in work or education, and will target “those most at risk of falling out of education or employment and match them to opportunities for education, training or work”.
There will also be a “youth guarantee” – with 18 to 21-year-olds in England all having access to apprenticeship, education or help to find a job. As part of this, the apprenticeship levy will be reformed.
A review will also be launched into how employers can be better supported to employ people with disabilities.
‘An end to blaming and shaming’
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said: “Our reforms put an end to the culture of blaming and shaming people who for too long haven’t been getting the support they need to get back to work.
“Helping people into decent, well-paid jobs and giving our children and young people the best start in life – that’s our plan to put more money in people’s pockets, unlock growth and make people better off.”
Helen Whately, the Conservative shadow work and pensions secretary, said Labour had made “no attempt to match the £12bn in welfare savings we promised in our manifesto”.
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Paul Nowak, the general secretary of the Trades Union Congress, backed Labour’s plans – but said: “Success will also depend on ministers making the investment that’s needed in health services and quality training.
“Jobcentre staff must have a central role in redesigning their services, and devolution must never come at the cost of staff terms and conditions.”
Louise Rubin, who is head of policy at disability equality charity Scope, said the government must understand the “lack of trust between disabled people and the DWP” – and the potential this has to undermine the reforms.
Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin, marks their 50th birthday amid a year of rising institutional and geopolitical adoption of the world’s first cryptocurrency.
The identity of Nakamoto remains one of the biggest mysteries in crypto, with speculation ranging from cryptographers like Adam Back and Nick Szabo to broader theories involving government intelligence agencies.
While Nakamoto’s identity remains anonymous, the Bitcoin (BTC) creator is believed to have turned 50 on April 5 based on details shared in the past.
According to archived data from his P2P Foundation profile, Nakamoto once claimed to be a 37-year-old man living in Japan and listed his birthdate as April 5, 1975.
Source: Web.archive.org
Nakamoto’s anonymity has played a vital role in maintaining the decentralized nature of the Bitcoin network, which has no central authority or leadership.
The Bitcoin wallet associated with Nakamoto, which holds over 1 million BTC, has laid dormant for more than 16 years despite BTC rising from $0 to an all-time high above $109,000 in January.
Satoshi Nakamoto statue in Lugano, Switzerland. Source: Cointelegraph
Nakamoto’s 50th birthday comes nearly a month after US President Donald Trump signed an executive order creating a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and a Digital Asset Stockpile, marking the first major step toward integrating Bitcoin into the US financial system.
Related: Bitcoin at 16: From experiment to trillion-dollar asset
Nakamoto’s legacy: a “cornerstone of economic sovereignty”
“At 50, Nakamoto’s legacy is no longer just code; it’s a cornerstone of economic sovereignty,” according to Anndy Lian, author and intergovernmental blockchain expert.
“Bitcoin’s reserve status signals trust in its scarcity and resilience,” Lian told Cointelegraph, adding:
“What’s fascinating is the timing. Fifty feels symbolic — half a century of life, mirrored by Bitcoin’s journey from a white paper to a trillion-dollar asset. Nakamoto’s vision of trustless, peer-to-peer money has outgrown its cypherpunk roots, entering the halls of power.”
However, lingering questions about Nakamoto remain unanswered, including whether they still hold the keys to their wallet, which is “a fortune now tied to US policy,” Lian said.
Related: Bitcoin’s next catalyst: End of $36T US debt ceiling suspension
Is Satoshi Nakamoto wealthier than Bill Gates?
In February, Arkham Intelligence published findings that attribute 1.096 million BTC — then valued at more than $108 billion — to Nakamoto. That would place him above Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates on the global wealth rankings, according to data shared by Coinbase director Conor Grogan.
Satoshi’s new addresses. Source: Conor Grogan
If accurate, this would make Nakamoto the world’s 16th richest person.
Despite the growing interest in Nakamoto’s identity and holdings, his early decision to remain anonymous and inactive has helped preserve Bitcoin’s decentralized ethos — a principle that continues to define the cryptocurrency to this day.
Magazine: 10 crypto theories that missed as badly as ‘Peter Todd is Satoshi’
The United States stock market lost more in value over the April 4 trading day than the entire cryptocurrency market is worth, as fears over US President Donald Trump’s tariffs continue to ramp up.
On April 4, the US stock market lost $3.25 trillion — around $570 billion more than the entire crypto market’s $2.68 trillion valuation at the time of publication.
Nasdaq 100 is now “in a bear market”
Among the Magnificent-7 stocks, Tesla (TSLA) led the losses on the day with a 10.42% drop, followed by Nvidia (NVDA) down 7.36% and Apple (AAPL) falling 7.29%, according to TradingView data.
The significant decline across the board signals that the Nasdaq 100 is now “in a bear market” after falling 6% across the trading day, trading resource account The Kobeissi Letter said in an April 4 X post. This is the largest daily decline since March 16, 2020.
“US stocks have now erased a massive -$11 TRILLION since February 19 with recession odds ABOVE 60%,” it added. The Kobessi Letter said Trump’s April 2 tariff announcement was “historic” and if the tariffs continue, a recession will be “impossible to avoid.”
Source: Anthony Scaramucci
On April 2, Trump signed an executive order establishing reciprocal tariffs on trading partners and a 10% baseline tariff on all imports from all countries.
Trump said the reciprocal tariffs will be roughly half the rate US trading partners impose on American goods.
Related: Bitcoin bulls defend $80K support as ‘World War 3 of trade wars’ crushes US stocks
Meanwhile, the crypto industry has pointed out that while the stock market continues to decline, Bitcoin (BTC) remains stronger than most expected.
Crypto trader Plan Markus pointed out in an April 4 X post that while the entire stock market “is tanking,” Bitcoin is holding.
Source: Jeff Dorman
Even some crypto skeptics have pointed out the contrast between Bitcoin’s performance and the US stock market during the recent period of macro uncertainty.
Stock market commentator Dividend Hero told his 203,200 X followers that he has “hated on Bitcoin in the past, but seeing it not tank while the stock market does is very interesting to me.”
Meanwhile, technical trader Urkel said Bitcoin “doesn’t appear to care one bit about tariff wars and markets tanking.” Bitcoin is trading at $83,749 at the time of publication, down 0.16% over the past seven days, according to CoinMarketCap data.
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