Health: Economic Inactivity

Lord Hannan of Kingsclere Excerpts

Thursday 18th May 2023 Lords Chamber

[Lord Evans of Rainow (Con)]

I apologise to the right reverend Prelate, but I am afraid I do not have that information to hand, so I will write to her with an answer.

[Lord Hannan of Kingsclere (Con)]

My Lords, the nature of the conditions that are keeping people off work has changed substantially: the biggest cause used to be back pain, and now it is mental health problems. This has happened largely since the lockdowns, and it is not surprising: if you tell people that a terrible virus is out there, there will be more anxiety and depression. Will my noble friend the Minister consider the long-term impact on health and mental health before we take a decision of that kind again?

[Lord Evans of Rainow (Con)]

My noble friend raises an important point, and he is exactly right: mental health and musculoskeletal conditions are the main issue for long-term sickness. The Covid pandemic meant that a lot of us worked from home in a sedentary position—we were not built for that; we were built for activity. Work always pays, but it also helps with mental health in the long term, so the key is to get as many long-term sick people back into work.