The rhetoric of welfare 'tough love'

The profile of people on income support is increasingly disadvantaged:

- 37% have a severe disability (i.e. qualify for DSP)

- 14% long-term unemployed (over 12 months)

- 17% caring for preschool children

-7% have a disability but are on NSA (i.e. partial capacity to work)

- There are 38,000 sole parent families on NSA/YA