The number of Britons receiving disability benefits has soared – though no such rises have been recorded in other developed countries.
One in ten of the working-age population – around 3.9million people – is now receiving incapacity handouts.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies data also shows a 150 per cent increase in new disability claims by the under 40s in the past four years – and a sharp rise in the number of benefit applications on mental health grounds.
But the research highlights how benefit claims are going up at a much faster rate in Britain than elsewhere – even though other comparable countries have also seen an increase in reported disability cases.
That will inevitably feed into the growing perception the UK welfare system is open to manipulation by slackers.
The IFS revealed the total of those on health-related benefits has risen by 38 per cent, from 2.8million people, in just four years.
Real-terms spending on such benefits over this period has increased by a third, from £36billion to £48billion, and is expected to hit £63billion by 2028.
The increase in claims has occurred in every local authority in England and Wales, apart from the City of London, and the official forecast is for further growth.
There are now 20 local authorities where more than one in seven 16 to 64-year-olds claim health-related benefits, up from two before the pandemic.
In contrast, claimant counts have fallen or remained flat in most comparable countries.
Denmark is the only other nation with significant growth – but, at 13 per cent since 2019, this is much slower than the growth in the UK.
The share of people reporting disabilities has also increased in the UK and in comparable countries, though the UK's rise has been faster than average.
John O'Connell, from the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: 'The unprecedented rise in the demand placed on the state is clearly unsustainable.'
The number of new disability benefit awards made to under 40s has grown from 4,500 a month in 2019/20 to 11,500 a month in 2023/24.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting promised reform and added: 'Fail to act and by the end of this parliament, 4.3 million people could be off work sick.'
