Sir Keir Starmer has promised sweeping changes to crack down on what he described as the “bulging benefits bill blighting our society”.

The Prime Minister used an op-ed in the Mail on Sunday to vow to “get to grips” with the cost of welfare after figures suggested more than four million people will be claiming long-term sickness support by the end of the decade.

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall will announce a package of legislation next week designed to “get Britain working” amid Government concerns about the projected rise.

Cabinet meeting
Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Liz Kendall will announce a package of measures to overhaul the welfare system next week (PA)

Official forecasts published by her department this week show that the number of people claiming incapacity benefits is expected to climb from a pre-pandemic figure of around 2.5 million in 2019 to around 4.2 million in 2029.

Last year there were just over three million claimants.

The Prime Minister wrote: “In the coming months, Mail on Sunday readers will see even more sweeping changes. Because make no mistake, we will get to grips with the bulging benefits bill blighting our society.

“Don’t get me wrong, we will crack down hard on anyone who tries to game the system, to tackle fraud so we can take cash straight from the banks of fraudsters.

“There will be a zero-tolerance approach to these criminals. My pledge to Mail on Sunday readers is this: I will grip this problem once and for all.”

Ms Kendall’s white paper is expected to include the placement of work coaches in mental health clinics and a “youth guarantee” aimed at ensuring those aged 18-21 are working or studying.