21. George Osborne’s scheme was intended to
- A. encourage jobseekers’ active engagement in job seeking.
- B. provide the unemployed with easier access to benefits.
- C. guarantee jobseekers’ legitimate right to benefits.
- D. motivate the unemployed to report voluntarily.
答案：A
答案句：Only if the jobless arrive at the jobcentre with a CV, register for online job search, and start looking for work will they be eligible for benefit – and then they should report weekly rather than fortnightly.
参考译文：只有当失业者带着简历来到就业中心、注册在线求职并开始寻找工作时，他们才有资格获得救济金——而且之后他们应该每周而不是每两周报告一次。
定位线索：题干“George Osborne's scheme was intended to”→答案句取自第1段“Only if the jobless arrive at the jobcentre with a CV, register for online job search, and start looking for work will they be eligible for benefit”；文中“start looking for work”对应选项A“active engagement in job seeking”。
解析：题干问Osborne计划的目的是什么。答案句明确指出失业者必须主动求职（带简历、注册、找工作）才能获得救济金，这直接对应选项A“鼓励求职者积极参与求职”。选项B“提供更容易获得救济金的途径”与原文相反，原文是增加条件；选项C“保障求职者的合法权利”偷换概念，原文强调条件而非权利；选项D“激励失业者自愿报告”无中生有，原文是要求每周报告，并非自愿。
22. The phrase “to sign on” (Line 3, Para. 2) most probably means
- A. to check on the availability of jobs at the jobcentre.
- B. to accept the government’s restrictions on the allowance.
- C. to register for an allowance from the government.
- D. to attend a governmental job-training program.
答案：C
答案句：“Those first few days should be spent looking for work, not looking to sign on,” he claimed. … Instead, the claimant receives a time-limited “allowance,” conditional on actively seeking a job; no entitlement and no insurance, at £71.70 a week, one of the least generous in the EU.
参考译文：“最初几天应该花在找工作上，而不是花在登记领取救济金上，”他声称。……相反，申请人领取的是有时间限制的“救济金”，以积极寻找工作为条件；没有权利，没有保险，每周71.70英镑，是欧盟最不慷慨的之一。
定位线索：题干“to sign on”→答案句取自第2段“not looking to sign on”及第4段“the claimant receives a time-limited 'allowance'”；文中“sign on”对应选项C“register for an allowance from the government”。
解析：词义题需结合上下文。答案句中“looking for work”与“looking to sign on”形成对比，后者指与找工作相对的行为；第4段进一步说明申请人领取的是“allowance”（救济金），因此“sign on”意为“登记领取救济金”，对应选项C。选项A“查看工作机会”与找工作重复，不符合对比逻辑；选项B“接受政府限制”和D“参加培训”均无原文依据。
23. What prompted the chancellor to develop his scheme?
- A. A desire to secure a better life for all.
- B. An eagerness to protect the unemployed.
- C. An urge to be generous to the claimants.
- D. A passion to ensure fairness for taxpayers.
答案：D
答案句：What motivated him, we were to understand, was his zeal for “fundamental fairness” – protecting the taxpayer, controlling spending and ensuring that only the most deserving claimants received their benefits.
参考译文：我们要理解的是，激励他的是对“基本公平”的热情——保护纳税人、控制开支并确保只有最应得的申请人获得救济金。
定位线索：题干“What prompted the chancellor”→答案句取自第2段“What motivated him”；文中“protecting the taxpayer”对应选项D“ensuring fairness for taxpayers”。
解析：题干问什么促使大臣制定该计划。答案句明确说动机是“fundamental fairness”，具体包括“protecting the taxpayer”，直接对应选项D“确保对纳税人的公平”。选项A“为所有人谋更好生活”是表面说法，但原文强调公平而非普遍改善；选项B“保护失业者”与原文“protecting the taxpayer”不符；选项C“对申请人慷慨”与原文“least generous”相反。
24. According to Paragraph 3, being unemployed makes one feel
- A. uneasy.
- B. insulted.
- C. enraged.
- D. guilty.
答案：A
答案句：It is financially terrifying, psychologically embarrassing and you know that support is minimal and extraordinarily hard to get. You are now not wanted; you are now excluded from the work environment that offers purpose and structure in your life.
参考译文：这在经济上令人恐惧，心理上令人尴尬，而且你知道支持是微乎其微且极难获得的。你现在不被需要；你被排除在提供生活目标和结构的工作环境之外。
定位线索：题干“According to Paragraph 3, being unemployed makes one feel”→答案句取自第3段“psychologically embarrassing”和“not wanted”；文中“embarrassing”对应选项A“uneasy”。
解析：题干问失业让人感觉如何。答案句提到“psychologically embarrassing”（心理上尴尬）和“not wanted”（不被需要），这些都与“uneasy”（不安）相符，对应选项A。选项B“受辱”程度过重，原文是尴尬而非侮辱；选项C“愤怒”无原文依据；选项D“内疚”偷换概念，原文未提及内疚。
25. To which of the following would the author most probably agree?
- A. Unemployment benefits should not be made conditional.
- B. The British welfare system indulges jobseekers’ laziness.
- C. The jobseekers’ allowance has met their actual needs.
- D. Osborne’s reforms will reduce the risk of unemployment.
答案：A
答案句：The principle of British welfare is no longer that you can insure yourself against the risk of unemployment and receive unconditional payments if the disaster happens. … Instead, the claimant receives a time-limited “allowance,” conditional on actively seeking a job; no entitlement and no insurance, at £71.70 a week, one of the least generous in the EU.
参考译文：英国福利的原则不再是你可以为自己投保失业风险，并在灾难发生时获得无条件付款。……相反，申请人领取的是有时间限制的“救济金”，以积极寻找工作为条件；没有权利，没有保险，每周71.70英镑，是欧盟最不慷慨的之一。
定位线索：题干“To which of the following would the author most probably agree”→答案句取自第4段“no longer that you can insure yourself... receive unconditional payments”和“conditional on actively seeking a job”；文中“unconditional payments”对应选项A“should not be made conditional”。
解析：题干问作者最可能同意哪项。答案句批评福利原则不再是“无条件付款”，而变成“conditional on actively seeking a job”，暗示作者认为救济金不应有条件，对应选项A。选项B“英国福利制度纵容懒惰”是Osborne的观点，作者在第3段反驳；选项C“救济金满足实际需求”与原文“least generous”矛盾；选项D“改革将降低失业风险”无原文依据，作者对改革持批评态度。