Skip to content

How big is the problem of people not working?

A new White Paper by the government aims to get more people into work and reduce spending on welfare benefits.

Ben Chu from BBC Verify looks at the scale of the task.

2 hours ago

Unemployment benefits

Department for Work & Pensions

Explore More

A man in a purple T-shirt and grey fleece

Giving over-50s in Northern Ireland a leg up back into employment

Northern Ireland

Devlin’s fruit and veg stall on Portobello Road market has been in the family for around 150 years.

Market stall run by the same family for 150 years

Advice NI expert lists the benefits recipients in line to receive the latest government payment.

Who qualifies for the £301 cost of living payment?

Northern Ireland

Charlie, an intern at Barista and Beyond

'The cafe helps a lot with my confidence'

Two women looking at a computer screen, next to a box with the words "Four-day week"

Four-day work week: How we got here - and where next

Dayeon has short black hair and glasses

'Job interviews cancelled because I'm disabled'

Megan Thompson

'My company gives me time off work for my period'

Frances O'Grady, General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress

Trades union chief warns on AI workplace changes

Boris Johnson

Starmer to Johnson: He is an ostrich

Daniel Cooke

'I've taken a second job to pay the energy bills'

The CEO of P&O Ferries has told MSPs he has "no plans to resign" amid an outcry over the sacking of 800 staff.

MSP to P&O Ferries boss: 'How do you sleep at night?'

Grant Shapps

Shapps on P&O sackings: We will change the law

Pranav Chopra, founder of NEMI Teas and Trampoline

How barista training opens doors for refugees

Lily Champ

'A happier team is a harder working team'

Amrit

'All I want is for an employer to have faith in me'

Joshua Mims

'Apprenticeships make you grow up faster than uni'

Rachael Flanagan

'I think the traditional job interview is dead'

Christian Chapman

US father fired on Zoom describes 'callous' call

Haider Malik

How I got my dream job with a Tube station pitch

Peter Davies

Man celebrates 60 years of working on farm

Kelpie

Climbing inside a Kelpie's head

Visitors will soon be given the chance to climb inside the 98ft tall structures near Falkirk.

Tayside & Central Scotland

Teenager taking a selfie while driving a car

Teen drives with knees before crashing into woman

The victim is left unable to speak or breathe independently after her car is hit.

BBC Newsline

BBC Newsline signed summary

A signed summary of BBC Newsline.

Dianne Morgan, a woman with short red hair in a green jumper, stands near a window in her house

'Trees were coming down the road, big boulders'

A woman living on a hill affected by a coal tip landslip describes slurry flowing down the road.

Demonstrators in Dublin holding signs thanking Nikita Hand

'It's important that we come together and stand for Nikita'

Hundreds of people have marched in support of the woman who won a civil rape case against Conor McGregor.

Jonah Fisher standing on a bridge in a Welsh town.

Storm Bert: How climate change causes wetter winters

As the UK grapples with the after-effects of Storm Bert, Jonah Fisher explains how climate change is driving more extreme weather patterns.

Players heading football in flooded pitch

Storm Bert: Football team swims in flooded pitch

Football players from Gloucestershire refused to let Storm Bert stop them from taking the pitch.

Gloucestershire

The White House Christmas tree arrives in a festive cart pulled by horses

First Lady receives White House Christmas tree

Jill Biden, accompanied by her grandson Beau, welcomed the arrival of the festive fir hailing from North Carolina.

A Tom Holland doppelganger and Tom Holland himself are on the left and right of a split screen

Crowds crown Tom Holland and Glen Powell lookalikes

Boston and Austin locals competed for prizes including $50, a bag of British candy and a movie cameo.

BBC News

East of England weather forecast

The latest weather forecast for the East of England from BBC Look East.

An elderly lady being helped out of a dinghy by two firemen in rescue gear

Emergency crews tackle flood waters in rescue operations

More than 100 flood warnings are in places across the country, with homes, businesses and roads being impacted.

President Joe Biden pardons Peach, one of two National Thanksgiving Day turkeys.

President Biden pardons turkeys at White House

Peach and Blossom from Minnesota were given the chance to 'gobble on' ahead of Thanksgiving Day.

Aerial footage of Cwmtillery showing the damage caused by the landslide

Aerial footage shows damage after coal tip slide

The local council said it could not give a timescale on when people can return to their homes

Gillian Smart wears a pink shirt with black and turquoise pattern. She presents the weather in front of a green screen which shows low pressure over Scotland.

Scotland weather forecast as Storm Bert brings high winds

Gillian Smart has the weather forecast, as much of Scotland has been battered by high winds on the third day of Storm Bert.

Sabrina Lee at desk with screen behind with weather map

Wales 'not out of the woods' as more rain forecast

Sabrina Lee says Wales is not out of the woods yet when it comes to storm-related disruption.

A man sitting on a chair in a barbershop and surrounded by water

Barber devastated after second shop flooded

Residents in south Wales have lashed out at what they say is a lack of preparation for Storm Bert.

An aerial shot of a playground in Bradford-on-Avon submerged in floodwater

Wiltshire town submerged in Storm Bert flood water

Parts of Chippenham are submerged in flood water after it was battered by Storm Bert.

A red and yellow child's car on it's side surrounded by water

'I could have lost my grandchildren in landslide'

Five adults and five children are rescued after a landslide in a village.

A man in a hi-vis in a red boat in a flooded field. There is also a man with his dog in the boat.

Couple and dog rescued from flooded field in dark

The couple made a 999 call after they were stranded in a flooded field with their dog.

Tractor driving through flood water in Tenbury Wells in a flooded village street with metres-high water

Onlookers shocked as tractor driven through floodwaters in Worcestershire town

A tractor driver comes under fire for travelling through deep floods in the centre of Tenbury Wells, in Worcestershire.

Hereford & Worcester