As many as one million British people could reportedly face having their disability benefits slashed as part of wide ranging reforms to welfare set to be announced next week.
People suffering some mental health disorders or have difficulty washing, dressing or even eating could be denied payments under plans to toughen up eligibility for the benefit.
The changes to eligibility criteria and other reforms such as getting rid of the “work capability assessment” for incapacity benefits and making the long-term sick prepare for work will hit around one million people, as reported by The Times.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves said the government had to “get a grip” of spiralling costs and a “broken” system, days before Labour announces proposals which would save an estimated £5bn.
Ms Reeves was challenged over her plans to slash welfare and other spending during a cabinet meeting this week, with some ministers said to be considering quitting, depending on the size of the cuts and who they affect.
But asked about proposed welfare cuts, Rachel Reeves said: “It is not working for people who need support, it’s not working to get people into work so that more people can fulfil their potential, and it’s not working for the taxpayer when the bill for welfare is going up by billions of pounds in the next few years.
“So, we do need to get a grip. We need to spend more on national defence, but we need to reform our public services, and we need to reform our broken welfare system.”
The changes will include making it harder to qualify for the Personal Independent Payment (PIP), likely by changing the descriptors assessors use to determine if an applicant is eligible for the benefit.
The plans come as spending on all health-related benefits rose to £65bn last year – up 25 per cent from the year before the Covid pandemic. They are forecast to rise to £70bn before the next election.
Claimed by 3.6 million people, the payment is designed to help people with extra costs incurred by their disability, whether they are working or not. But Sir Keir Starmer called the current system “unsustainable, indefensible and unfair”.
The prime minister has already lost one cabinet minister this month after Anneliese Dodds, the international development minister, quit in protest at a decision to halve the overseas aid budget to fund a hike in defence spending.
The prime minister denied Britain was “returning to austerity” with the changes but said the cost of benefits was “going through the roof” and on track to surpass the bill for both prisons and the Home Office combined.
David Southgate, policy manager at Scope told The Independent: “Life costs a lot more when you’re disabled, and disability benefits are a lifeline.
“The benefits system desperately needs improving, but cutting benefits will just push thousands more disabled people into poverty.”
The PIP application process is “complex, stressful and degrading” he adds, something several claimants attest to. Generally, to apply for the benefit, applicants must call the DWP’s dedicated phone line, complete the 90-plus question paper form that is sent to them, and return it.
In most cases, an application will then be followed by an assessment, which is carried out on the phone or in-person. It is this assessment where most claimants find they run into the greatest difficulty.
A spokesperson for the Department for Work and Pensions told The Times: “We have a duty to get the welfare bill on a more sustainable path and we will achieve that through meaningful, principled reforms rather than arbitrary cuts to spending.”
