Liam Byrne: Welfare state needs 'major update' David Cameron is set to call for a wider debate about welfare, arguing the current system promotes a "something for nothing" culture of entitlement. Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Liam Byrne believes the government is "coming at it from the wrong approach." "We need a major update to the welfare state," he told the Today programme, calling for "stronger action" to get people back in work, "new answers" on social housing and "radical reform" of private pensions.