The Tories should release the second Freud Review
Peter Hoskin 4:43pm
Now the Tories have nabbed David Freud from the Government, they have the perfect opportunity to recast the welfare debate for the recession years. As Alex Barker pointed out in an excellent blog post for the FT yesterday, they certainly need to. After all, recent findings suggest that the Freud-prescribed workfare measures aren't working quite as well as many hoped they would as the downturn takes hold.
Now, that's not to say the welfare reform agenda should be jettisoned. There's overwhelming evidence that it works better than centralised alternatives, and with unemployment levels shooting ever upwards - and with some 5.2 million Brits on out-of-work benefits - there's a clear need for drastic action. But, if the country's going to get out of its current mess, there's also a clear need for a new framework, a refinement of Freud's orignal vision.
But where to start? One idea may be to work closely with those private sector organisations which are actually expanding during the recession - such as KFC, which announced the creation of 9,000 new jobs today. If the Tories can pull it off, there's a chance they can steal a march on Labour in this vital, and closely-contested, policy area.
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geoff
February 16th, 2009 5:17pm Report this commentThe tories oppose some of the most important welfare reforms, such as getting single mums back into work.
Dont try and pretend they are up for the hard choices. Just look at their choice of secretary of state - theresa may!!
Orlando Graveney
February 16th, 2009 5:34pm Report this commentYou can spin this story till you're blue in the face but Freud is always going bea carpetbagging Labour cast off on the make. Just like Camerons other New Best Friends.
Rhoda Klapp
February 16th, 2009 5:48pm Report this commentAnybody who wants private sector firms to hire people should consider removing all the obstacles that successive governments have placed in the way. Equal opportunity, maternity rights, tribunals, rights of part-timers and contract workers, etc etc.
It'll take some guts........
Sally Chatterjee
February 16th, 2009 6:03pm Report this commentI wish him all the luck in tackling this tough area of policy but suggest there is plenty of scope for this to backfire.
The Tories can adopt radical welfare policies but are they best articulated by a millionaire investment banker?
I know from personal experience that he can be prickly to work with. A wit at UBS named him "inclement Freud" for the harsh way he ran the Transport advisory team.
Finally, nominating him for a peerage just shows the lack of ideas within the Commons, it also smacks of unaccountability.
The instant pleasure of seeing a government advisor switch sides could be muted by longer term consequences of associating with this investment banker.
George Laird
February 16th, 2009 6:50pm Report this commentDear All
What does a millionaire investment Banker know about welfare and the people on it?
This appointment was a mistake because it lacks that essential thing needed, experience at the coal face.
I would say that Freud would be clueless about the very fact of why welfare reform keeps failing.
What a massive badly thoughtout strategy by picking a man who is there to balance the books, not help people.
This helps push towards my hope for a hung parliament. This is a vote loser for the tories.
Yours sincerely
George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University
TGF UKIP
February 16th, 2009 7:29pm Report this commentTogether with your other post on Mulgan and Taylor, James, it's as if Cameron has said "Let me have such men about me as Steve (Green Party) Hilton can be comfortable with."
Your London Cameroon lot, James, really must look in the mirror and see each other.
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