The Conservatives unveiled a sweeping £47bn annual spending cuts plan at their party conference in Manchester on Monday. Shadow Chancellor Sir Mel Stride set out the proposals as the party battles to restore economic credibility and win back support from Reform UK.
The centrepiece involves slashing £23bn from the welfare bill through major changes to disability benefits. People would no longer be able to claim personal independence payments for less severe mental health conditions such as anxiety, with medical diagnosis required before accessing PIP or universal credit incapacity benefits.
The party proposes replacing cash payments to PIP recipients with alternative support such as equipment purchases or tailored treatments. Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Helen Whately said: "You have a whole way of life which involves people not working… a serious problem where the norm has become in some communities not to work."
Civil service and housing cuts
The Conservatives pledge to fire a quarter of civil servants, reducing numbers from 517,000 to 384,000 - returning to 2016 levels. This would save £8bn annually according to party calculations.
Social housing would be restricted to households headed by UK nationals, saving £4bn. The party also promises to ban non-UK citizens from receiving benefits entirely. The Daily Mail reports that 470,000 migrants with various legal statuses currently claim universal credit.
Foreign aid and environmental spending
Foreign aid would be slashed to 0.1 per cent of GDP from the current 0.3 per cent, saving £7bn annually. The cuts represent a dramatic reduction from the 0.7 per cent target introduced by David Cameron.
The Conservatives would scrap the boiler upgrade scheme that subsidises heat pump installations, eliminating £300m in annual spending. The proposals aim to avoid tax rises while beginning to reduce them.
Political challenges ahead
Stride promised: "The Conservative party will never, ever make fiscal commitments without spelling out exactly how they will be paid for. We're the only party that gets it."
Labour chair Anna Turley responded: "The Tories let welfare bills, civil service numbers and asylum hotel use skyrocket on their watch - and they've never apologised." The BBC reports that disability benefits spending is forecast to rise from £64.7bn to £100.7bn by 2029-30.
The Institute for Economic Affairs warns that age-related spending like pensions remains the "elephant in the room" not addressed by the Conservative cuts. The party faces the challenge of rebuilding economic credibility after Liz Truss's market-destabilising policies while competing with both Labour's government platform and Reform UK's growing poll numbers.
Sources used: "The i", "Independent", "BBC", "HuffPost UK", "Daily Mail", "Mirror" Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
