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And so it was when Reform UK’s Treasury spokesman Robert Jenrick said Britain was a long way down the road to becoming bankrupt.

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Specifically, the culture of welfare dependency this country has fostered where idleness, inactivity, and indolence have become attractive lifestyle choices.

It does not require much of a brain to work out that if 53% of the population are net takers from the state - and just 47% net contributors - we’re in deep trouble.

And that is exactly where we are heading with the benefits system, which already accounts for almost 25% of all government spending, set to reach £407bn by 2030.

So when Mr Jenrick said Reform would axe £50bn from the bloated annual bill it drew gasps from the Left and the Right.

For the hand wringers and pearl clutchers who see no harm in dishing out handouts like confetti it was an appalling affront to Britain’s reputation as a country of compassion.

To those on the Right it was pure and simple common sense.

The welfare state is a vast and complex behemoth that swallows obscene amounts of money.

Psychiatric disorders like anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder make up the largest share of Personal Independence Payments (PIP).

More than half applying for PIP are successful including almost one in five suffering acne and two thirds with non-specific back pain.

While it is true there are a great many people who cannot work and are rightly supported, there are vast numbers who are playing the system and are taking us all for a ride (and have been for years).

Mr Jenrick (as well as the Conservatives) recognise this.

Reform has pledged to ban foreign nationals from claiming any handouts and embark on an overhaul of the PIP system for which money can be given from a menu of more than 500 different health conditions.

It has also come up with an idea that will send the Left round the bend but is perhaps the most sensible and popular in years: those who have been jobless for more than a year should earn their money.

Critics - including the army of human rights lawyers that dominate every arena of our lives - will try to frame this idea as nothing more than claimant chain gangs, modern day hard physical labour as a form of punishment. But what is wrong with instilling civic pride and starting the fightback against nationwide rot and decay?

At the moment millions get something for nothing. And it has irked the strivers and savers drowning under the weight of not only supporting their families, but many others as well.

It seems entirely conceivable that those out of work and in need of financial support could help mend church roofs, help fill hundreds of millions of potholes that have left much of the road network looking like farm tracks, pick the rubbish that litters the verges of every bypass, dual carriageway, and hedgerow, and help charities, schools, and the voluntary sector, in what could become a drive towards national unity.

It might be the first step towards finally eradicating the something-for-nothing culture that replaced togetherness and community that were once hallmarks of this great country.

We cannot possibly expect better days ahead if Britain continues to reward laziness and inaction as it so obviously has under Labour.

Since they came to power in 2024 Labour has undertaken one of the biggest transfers of wealth from families and businesses to the taxman in history, all while public services are run into the ground.

Taxpayers are keeping less of what they earn in what has been described as death by a thousand cuts.

Benefits will be a key battleground in the run-up to the next general election.

Mr Jenrick has set the hare running with his idea - one so sensible it is a wonder it has never been mooted before.

What he was really trying to say in setting out how he will reform the welafre state is that it’s time to Make Britain Great Again.