Benefit claimants could soon face tougher conditions to continue receiving financial support after Prime Minister Andy Burnham suggested the Government is considering stricter welfare rules. The Labour leader indicated that some people may be expected to take up work opportunities offered to them if they want to keep receiving benefits, as ministers look for ways to reduce the country’s growing welfare bill.

Mr Burnham said he believes more people could return to work if they are given the right help and support. He suggested the focus should be on helping people into employment while also expecting them to take opportunities when they become available.

Mr Burnham told the BBC: “It’s about changing the nature of the support and making some of the support conditional upon people taking opportunities that are presented in front of them.

“So you might increase the conditions required to receive benefits.

“I think it’s a good thing that the government has given guarantees of opportunities for young people.

“And I think we need to continue down that approach and where mental health support is needed, for instance, it’s provided in work to support people in an opportunity.”

The Prime Minister later said the country needed to get “really serious” about reducing the welfare bill.

He said: “Let me just say something more though, about you’re driving at, which is the welfare bill. I think we’ve got to get really serious as a country at getting the welfare down.”

However, Mr Burnham insisted he was not blaming people who receive benefits.

Instead, he argued that many young people have been failed by a lack of support while growing up, making it harder for them to move into education or employment.

His comments come after Labour’s plans to reform the welfare system ran into difficulties last year following a backbench rebellion during Sir Keir Starmer‘s time as Prime Minister.

Burnham is also facing pressure to tackle rising welfare costs after a review by Sir Alan Milburn warned that more than one million young people are not in education, employment or training.

A separate review of the disability benefits system is also under way, while Sir Alan’s final recommendations are due this autumn.