Why is Labour continuing the Tory welfare lie? You know the one:
“The welfare system is broken.”
The phrase may sound familiar to you. It’s the line that’s been echoed by right-wing politicians, pundits, and even some on the Labour side. And yet, it’s a lie — and one that has been weaponised for more than a decade.
We remember when the Tories first said it.
We remember the early days of austerity: 2010, when David Cameron and George Osborne launched their brutal attack on the welfare state.
Buy Cruel Britannia in print here. Buy the Cruel Britannia ebook here. Or just click on the image!
They claimed the system was “broken” — that it was wasteful, that it encouraged dependency, and that cuts were necessary to “fix” it.
But we also remember what followed:
The punishment of the poor.
- The increase in sanctions, leaving vulnerable people without money for weeks or months.
- The reduction in housing benefits, making it harder for low-income families to keep a roof over their heads.
- The introduction of Universal Credit, which pushed people further into poverty with delayed payments, a chaotic system, and countless errors.
And the most damaging lie of all? The idea that poor people were to blame for their own poverty. That they were “scroungers,” “shirkers,” or “lazy.”
That was never true.
The welfare system wasn’t “broken.” It was deliberately sabotaged — and the human cost was staggering.
But here’s the shocking truth: The Labour Party is now repeating the same rhetoric.
In recent months, we’ve heard Labour figures, including senior Shadow Cabinet members, parrot the same language the Tories used — phrases like “tough decisions,” “reform,” and “stricter conditions” for benefits claimants.
We’ve heard Labour’s leadership talk about “rewarding the wrong people,” as if poverty is something that can be blamed on individuals rather than the political choices that created it.
Even more disheartening is how Labour now supports policies that echo those which caused so much harm in the first place.
Instead of fighting for a fairer system, Labour seems to be willing to accept — or even embrace — the narrative that the benefits system needs to be tougher.
This isn’t just a betrayal of their principles; it’s a betrayal of the very people they were supposed to stand for.
Let’s be clear: Labour isn’t merely talking about improving the system — it’s talking about continuing the same policies that have been used to punish the poor, to strip away support, and to demonise those who rely on the system.
The Tory legacy Labour is embracing
When Labour says the welfare system is “broken,” that party is accepting the Tories’ framing that the problem is with the people, not the policies.
They are endorsing the myth that benefit recipients are lazy or undeserving — a narrative that has done untold damage over the past decade. But the truth is:
- It wasn’t benefit fraud that caused the crisis — it was the £19 billion in welfare cuts implemented by the Tories.
- It wasn’t the “scroungers” who brought the system to its knees — it was the drastic underfunding of support services and the systematic stripping away of people’s rights.
- It wasn’t lazy people who became poorer; it was austerity that bled public services dry and left millions without the help they needed.
What’s more, the benefits system wasn’t the only thing attacked by these policies — this was a deliberate attempt to shift the blame from the wealthy elites to the most vulnerable in society, while preserving the system that allowed the rich to hoard resources and avoid paying taxes.
Why is Labour repeating these lies?
It’s easy to see why the Tories used these tactics: the media — both tabloid and establishment — ate them up.
By stoking fears about benefit fraud, the Tories could disguise their true agenda: austerity, tax cuts for the rich, and a weakening of public services. The message was clear: the poor were the problem, not the policies that kept them poor.
But now Labour is parroting that same message. Why?
Is it because they fear backlash from the right-wing press?
Is it because they’re trying to appear “tough on welfare,” in a cynical attempt to win over Tory voters?
Or is it something worse: the internalisation of a lie?
Has Labour bought into the same narrative that the poor are a drain on society? That they deserve less? That it is their fault they are struggling?
If Labour really believes this, then they are not offering us an alternative to Tory rule — they are simply offering us more of the same.
The real problem: privatisation, inequality, and tax avoidance
Let’s make this crystal clear: the benefits system is not broken. The government is broken.
The system has been undermined by successive governments, both Tory and Labour, that have systematically transferred wealth from the public to the private sector — from cuts to public services to tax breaks for the rich. This is what has broken the system. This is what has caused inequality to rise.
Labour needs to stop repeating the lie that “welfare” is the issue. It is not.
The real issues are:
- Failure to tax the rich fairly.
- Privatisation of public services that left people with nothing when they needed support the most.
- Deliberate dismantling of social safety nets under the guise of “efficiency.”
What Labour needs to do
If Labour’s leaders want to change things, they mustn’t keep perpetuating the lie that “welfare is broken”. They need to acknowledge that the Welfare State is not the problem; the problem is the policies and ideologies that have undermined it.
The people Labour claims to represent need a voice that fights for them, not one that repeats the mistakes of the past.
If Labour truly wants to restore hope and dignity to the most vulnerable in society, it must stop endorsing the rhetoric of punishment and start offering a vision of restoration — a system that supports, uplifts, and empowers.
Only then can we begin to heal the damage done over the past decade.
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The first collection, Strong Words and Hard Times,
is still available in either print or eBook format here:
Why is Labour continuing the Tory welfare lie?
Why is Labour continuing the Tory welfare lie? You know the one:
The phrase may sound familiar to you. It’s the line that’s been echoed by right-wing politicians, pundits, and even some on the Labour side. And yet, it’s a lie — and one that has been weaponised for more than a decade.
We remember when the Tories first said it.
We remember the early days of austerity: 2010, when David Cameron and George Osborne launched their brutal attack on the welfare state.
Buy Cruel Britannia in print here. Buy the Cruel Britannia ebook here. Or just click on the image!
They claimed the system was “broken” — that it was wasteful, that it encouraged dependency, and that cuts were necessary to “fix” it.
But we also remember what followed:
The punishment of the poor.
And the most damaging lie of all? The idea that poor people were to blame for their own poverty. That they were “scroungers,” “shirkers,” or “lazy.”
That was never true.
The welfare system wasn’t “broken.” It was deliberately sabotaged — and the human cost was staggering.
But here’s the shocking truth: The Labour Party is now repeating the same rhetoric.
In recent months, we’ve heard Labour figures, including senior Shadow Cabinet members, parrot the same language the Tories used — phrases like “tough decisions,” “reform,” and “stricter conditions” for benefits claimants.
We’ve heard Labour’s leadership talk about “rewarding the wrong people,” as if poverty is something that can be blamed on individuals rather than the political choices that created it.
Even more disheartening is how Labour now supports policies that echo those which caused so much harm in the first place.
Instead of fighting for a fairer system, Labour seems to be willing to accept — or even embrace — the narrative that the benefits system needs to be tougher.
This isn’t just a betrayal of their principles; it’s a betrayal of the very people they were supposed to stand for.
Let’s be clear: Labour isn’t merely talking about improving the system — it’s talking about continuing the same policies that have been used to punish the poor, to strip away support, and to demonise those who rely on the system.
The Tory legacy Labour is embracing
When Labour says the welfare system is “broken,” that party is accepting the Tories’ framing that the problem is with the people, not the policies.
They are endorsing the myth that benefit recipients are lazy or undeserving — a narrative that has done untold damage over the past decade. But the truth is:
What’s more, the benefits system wasn’t the only thing attacked by these policies — this was a deliberate attempt to shift the blame from the wealthy elites to the most vulnerable in society, while preserving the system that allowed the rich to hoard resources and avoid paying taxes.
Why is Labour repeating these lies?
It’s easy to see why the Tories used these tactics: the media — both tabloid and establishment — ate them up.
By stoking fears about benefit fraud, the Tories could disguise their true agenda: austerity, tax cuts for the rich, and a weakening of public services. The message was clear: the poor were the problem, not the policies that kept them poor.
But now Labour is parroting that same message. Why?
Is it because they fear backlash from the right-wing press?
Is it because they’re trying to appear “tough on welfare,” in a cynical attempt to win over Tory voters?
Or is it something worse: the internalisation of a lie?
Has Labour bought into the same narrative that the poor are a drain on society? That they deserve less? That it is their fault they are struggling?
If Labour really believes this, then they are not offering us an alternative to Tory rule — they are simply offering us more of the same.
The real problem: privatisation, inequality, and tax avoidance
Let’s make this crystal clear: the benefits system is not broken. The government is broken.
The system has been undermined by successive governments, both Tory and Labour, that have systematically transferred wealth from the public to the private sector — from cuts to public services to tax breaks for the rich. This is what has broken the system. This is what has caused inequality to rise.
Labour needs to stop repeating the lie that “welfare” is the issue. It is not.
The real issues are:
What Labour needs to do
If Labour’s leaders want to change things, they mustn’t keep perpetuating the lie that “welfare is broken”. They need to acknowledge that the Welfare State is not the problem; the problem is the policies and ideologies that have undermined it.
The people Labour claims to represent need a voice that fights for them, not one that repeats the mistakes of the past.
If Labour truly wants to restore hope and dignity to the most vulnerable in society, it must stop endorsing the rhetoric of punishment and start offering a vision of restoration — a system that supports, uplifts, and empowers.
Only then can we begin to heal the damage done over the past decade.
Vox Political needs your help!
If you want to support this site
(but don’t want to give your money to advertisers)
you can make a one-off donation here:
Be among the first to know what’s going on! Here are the ways to manage it:
1) Register with us by clicking on ‘Subscribe’ (bottom right of the home page). You can then receive notifications of every new article that is posted here.
2) Follow VP on Twitter @VoxPolitical
3) Like the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/VoxPolitical/
Join the Vox Political Facebook page.
4) You could even make Vox Political your homepage at http://voxpoliticalonline.com
5) Follow Vox Political writer Mike Sivier on BlueSky
6) Join the MeWe page at https://mewe.com/p-front/voxpolitical
7) Feel free to comment!
And do share with your family and friends – so they don’t miss out!
If you have appreciated this article, don’t forget to share it using the buttons at the bottom of this page. Politics is about everybody – so let’s try to get everybody involved!
Buy Vox Political books so we can continue
fighting for the facts.
Cruel Britannia is available
in either print or eBook format here:
The Livingstone Presumption is available
in either print or eBook format here:
Health Warning: Government! is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
The first collection, Strong Words and Hard Times,
is still available in either print or eBook format here:
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