edit: look, the problem with basing solutions on a nonsense assessment of the problem is it doesn't work. We've been round this with disability benefit; it was made much harder to claim by simply rejecting a very large number of valid claims upfront. A bogus appeal process through ASOS was put in place to further deplete people's ability to claim. However, once the claims got in front of a real court or external appeal, the majority were upheld.
> More than five million people were claiming out-of-work benefits at the last count
The government thinks that's 1.5m.
https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peoplenotin...
edit: look, the problem with basing solutions on a nonsense assessment of the problem is it doesn't work. We've been round this with disability benefit; it was made much harder to claim by simply rejecting a very large number of valid claims upfront. A bogus appeal process through ASOS was put in place to further deplete people's ability to claim. However, once the claims got in front of a real court or external appeal, the majority were upheld.
There isn't a hidden army of the idle.