Emily Thornberry MP, Labour’s Shadow Employment Minister,responding to the DWP’s publication of new figures on Work Programme performance, said:

“After almost five years, the Work Programme is starting to look like a missed opportunity.

“This is another disappointing set of figures. The Work Programme is still doing the least to help those most in need of support, and more than 70% of all participants still don’t have a job even after two years on the scheme. Moreover, it remains the case that you’re more likely to be sanctioned on the Work Programme than you are to get a job. 

“Worse still, the Tories are cutting funding for the Work Programme’s successor by up to 80%, sending a terrible message to jobseekers by suggesting that the Government has given up on helping them.”