Iain Duncan Smith's 'tough' site for jobseekers

Jobseekers in England, Scotland and Wales will have to use a new government website that can automatically tell jobcentres about their applications - or risk losing their benefit payments.

The Welfare Secretary Iain Duncan Smith told political correspondent Ross Hawkins on Radio 4's The World at One programme, that the new site can automatically send people vacancies - and demand explanations from them if they do not apply.

Iain Duncan Smith explained that if a job adviser thinks the reasons that you have given for not applying for a job are "specious" then "he may call you in and say I really think that you ought to be applying for these jobs."

When asked about issuing electronic cards that would restrict claimants in spending their benefits payments, he said that "giving people cash sometimes can actually lead to further problems".

He stressed that the scheme would only affect specific claimants.