Sanctions and Sweeteners Rights and responsibilities in the benefits system

Can government use the benefit system to change the behaviour of claimants?

The last decade has seen a growing trend for adding new conditions that people must meet to receive benefits. This report dissects the evidence from the UK, US and Europe on the impact of extended benefit conditions on three groups: disabled people, lone parents and anti-social tenants.

The authors assess the legitimacy of conditioning welfare benefits on whether claimants behave as the government would like and examine the effectiveness of such conditions in bringing about specific policy goals.