The Conservatives have come up with plans to reform the welfare system and anyone claiming unemployment benefits for two years or more could have to carry out a year long community work placement in their local area.

Under the proposals participants would be sent to work collecting rubbish, cleaning graffiti and cleaning up parks and public buildings and those who refuse to take part in the community scheme would lose their benefits.

The Tory proposals, unveiled by David Cameron this week, are aimed at reducing the number of people who claim benefits instead of looking for work.

The party estimates 200,000 people have been claiming Jobseekers Allowance for more than two years and 2.6 million people are claiming Incapacity Benefit.

Mr Waterson told the Herald he was in favour of the shake-up and getting the long term unemployed off benefits and back to work.

He said, "In my experience as a constituency MP, the people who get the most concerned with this issue are those that are in relatively low paid jobs, struggling to make ends and to meet the family budget.

These people may have neighbours not working officially who are claiming benefits and in some cases unjustifiably."

Mr Waterson added, "If people are genuinely incapacitated so be it, but there is a certain proportion in those figures who are pulling the wool, so to speak."