The Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has defended proposals to restrict how some welfare claimants spend their Universal Credit payments, arguing that state support should be a safety net rather than a lifestyle choice. The plan would reduce payments by 30 per cent for claimants who have not made sufficient contributions to the welfare system, loading the reduced payment onto a pre-payment card that blocks spending on alcohol, cigarettes, gambling and cash withdrawals. Badenoch dismissed suggestions that such restrictions are paternalistic, asserting that because the funds come from taxpayers, the state has a legitimate interest in how they are used.

Under the Conservative plan, all unemployed Universal Credit claimants would receive full benefits for six months to find employment; after that, only those with a sufficient contribution history would continue at the full rate. The Party estimates the reforms would save taxpayers £538 million annually by moving approximately 350,000 claimants onto a subsistence allowance worth 70p per pound of the standard rate. People who are ill, disabled, or claiming whilst in work would be exempt from the restrictions. Badenoch framed the policy as encouraging work, noting that 1.1 million people assessed as able to work are currently unemployed.