GB News star Michelle Dewberry and trade unionist Paul Embery faced off in a lively discussion about Rishi Sunak’s bid to stop Britain’s ‘sick note culture’.
The prime minister has vowed to cut down on people who live on benefits as a “lifestyle choice”, saying it has resulted in a “spiralling” welfare bill.
It comes as the number of people off work due to long-term sickness rose to a staggering 2.8 million.
Embery said on Dewbs & Co that while the workplace has its benefits, many Britons are dissuaded from working due to its “mundane drudgery”.
Michelle Dewberry spoke to Paul Embery on GB News
GB NEWS
“So what?”, Michelle snapped back. “Don’t complain if people ask, why should I engage in 40-50 hours a week of this?”, Embery responded.
The GB News star disagreed, saying work for many is a mundane chore but it is necessary to ensure financial security.
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“I say so what, I should say ‘and what’”, she said.
“Do what you want in life and you never have to work a day in your life, what a wonderful sentiment and high five if you are leaving your dream.
“In reality, most people just have to keep a roof over their heads and sometimes that work is not nice.”
Embery argued: “We’ve got a responsibility as a society to make work rewarding, not just in terms of decent wages but to have an economy that has decent, solid jobs, we don’t do that, we level down.
Rishi Sunak has vowed to crack down on workshy Britons
GB News
Mich
GB NEWS
“It’s a race to the bottom, we have transient employment in the gig economy and we pay them low wages to do it and we obsess about financial services which create a huge disparity.
“All the money floods into the city of London and the south east, the post industrialists have just been told to suck it up.
“When you look at those post industrial areas, coastal communities, you see they have been thrown under the bus.
“You see social decay, violence and family breakdown, we have paid a huge amount.”
Michelle concurred with many of the sentiments being put forward, adding: “I do agree we have failed a lot of towns and cities.
“I guess I worry that we’re selling this dream, particularly to young people, that work is going to be this awesome thing and you will find peace.
“Sometimes work is damn boring, it’s really repetitive and sometimes you don’t want to get up and go and do it.
“You know what? Tough. That’s life. Provide for yourself, provide for your family, if you can.”