Disabled people are 'living in fear' of Labour's benefit cuts: 'I will probably have to give up work'

Disabled people fear they will lose work and independence and have been left feeling “demonised” as a result of Labour’s proposed disability benefit cuts, new research has revealed.

Charity Sense found that two in five (39%) disabled people surveyed felt “demonised” by the government’s rhetoric surrounding welfare reform, and more than a third (37%) felt “less valued by society” due to the proposals.

It comes as the government faces a significant rebellion from Labour MPs, with more than 100 signing an amendment which could block the government from moving forward with its plans for welfare reform.

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Sense warns that if they go ahead, the disability benefit cuts could have a “devastating” impact, with nearly a quarter (23%) of those surveyed fearing they will no longer be able to afford essentials like energy and food.

The proposals would tighten the eligibility criteria for personal independence payment (PIP) so that more than 800,000 people will lose the daily living element of the benefit from next year.

They also plan to slash the health element of universal credit for new claimants, freeze it for current claimants and remove it for claimants under the age of 22.

The government’s own estimates suggest that 250,000 people will be pushed into poverty as a result of the cuts, including 50,000 children.

Sense criticised the impact on people’s finances if benefit cuts are pushed through, “while sending a deeply damaging message that disabled people are less valued in our society”.

Hannah Moreton, who has had ME (chronic fatigue syndrome) for 20 years, is autistic, has fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis in her knees, is hyper-mobile and has hearing loss, explained that she could be forced to give up her job if she loses access to PIP under the proposed reforms.

The 40-year-old, from Hinckley, Leicestershire, told the Big Issue that she used her PIP payments to pay for her power wheelchair, while the money also allows her family to have a cleaner and buy good quality ready meals for her two children when she is unable to stand to cook.

Moreton currently receives the daily living allowance element of PIP but fears this could be cut when she is next assessed, which may mean losing the support she needs in order to work as resident visual artist at Sense, helping disabled people with complex needs to experience visual arts.

“If I lose my PIP, it would probably result in me having to give up my work,” she explained. “ME is a chronic, fatiguing illness and without the support I buy with my PIP, I wouldn’t have the energy to keep working. That makes me feel not worthy and angry. I love my job at Sense and don’t want to be forced to give it up because of these welfare cuts.”

Moreton was first assessed for PIP in November 2022, which she said was “stressful”, but explained that being awarded PIP “made you feel seen and understood that the struggles that I was having, and therefore the support that I needed, was was justified”.

“To face having my reassessment, and potentially no longer not being on those same criteria that I first was assessed under in itself is scary, because it potentially means as that gets closer, I’m feeling less and less able to be independent,” she told the Big Issue.

“The things that it supports me in doing, being a parent and being an employed person, mentally that’s going to knock me for – well more than six. It will have a drastic impact on my mental health.”

Despite her mobility gradually declining, Moreton said she is concerned she may lose her PIP under tightened new rules when her reassessment is due in November 2026, as she may not score four points in any one activity.

“PIP has directly supported me in being able to go back into a career,” she explained. “If I lose my daily living allowance, it will affect my capacity to be able to go out and work. I use PIP to support the things in my life that I wouldn’t have the capacity to do when I get home, such as cook for my children and keep the house clean, because I have someone to come and do that for me. I’ve used PIP to purchase my own mobility aids.

“Fundamentally, if I lose the support that I have that allows me to use the energy that I do have in my life to go out and work, I wouldn’t be able to continue working.”

She added that it’s a “very scary time” for disabled people, and that putting up “further barriers” to accessibility is not going to be a “positive change”.

“By demonising, by making out that disabled people are the reason for countries’ debt, that makes them out to be just not valued members of society, not individual people in themselves,” she said.

“The government needs to listen to disabled people. We’re saying that these reforms won’t work as they think they will. It’s going to set people back in their independence.”

Lorraine Griffin, 53, added that the stress of the ongoing debates over potential cuts to disability benefits meant that she had a panic attack and had to be taken to A&E.

Griffin, who lives in Dudley Wood with her two sons, Benjamin, 13, and Sam, 12, who both have autism, explained that she has “constant anxiety about the future” due to the proposals, which could see her family’s benefits cut.

Both of her children currently receive disability living allowance (DLA), which will end when they turn 16, at which point they will need to apply for PIP, but Griffin explained that even with DLA, the financial support still falls short of covering the significant additional costs that come with the children’s disabilities.

“The money we receive in disability benefits is everything to us. It means we can live – it means we can go out, put food on the table, and meet our basic needs,” she explained, adding that she is worried about how the proposals will affect her family, especially plans to delay access to the ‘limited capability for work or work-related activity’ element of universal credit until age 22.

“When Liz Kendall announced that disability benefits could be cut, I had a panic attack. I live with constant anxiety about the future, never knowing if our already limited safety net is going to be pulled away,” she said. “I hate to think what would happen if we were forced to live on even less. It wouldn’t just be difficult – it would be impossible.”

James Watson-O’Neill, chief executive of Sense, added that the government needs to “listen to the voices of disabled people and urgently rethink these devastating proposals”.

“This research lays bare the fear, distress and stigma that disabled people are already experiencing in response to the government’s proposed welfare reforms. People are telling us they’re worried they won’t be able to heat their homes, put food on the table, or afford the therapies they rely on. These are not luxuries – they are basic needs,” Watson-O’Neill said.

“These plans risk pushing hundreds of thousands into poverty and isolation, while sending a deeply damaging message that disabled people are less valued in our society.”

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