Labour pushes on with 'catastrophic' disability benefit cuts: 'The government is just not listening'

The Labour government has been slammed for “turning its back on thousands of disabled people” as it pushes ahead with plans to cut disability benefits.

It has published a new parliamentary bill – the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill – outlining its proposals for welfare reform which it hopes to be made law, including some additional protections for those impacted by the cuts to disability benefits.

However, ministers remain clear that they plan on moving forward with welfare cuts which will see more than three million people lose financial support.

MPs are expected to vote on the bill in the coming weeks, with changes not expected until 2026.

Read more:

• Meet the rebel Labour MPs voting against disability benefit cuts: ‘I don’t want to be part of it’
• 70,000 more people to lose disability benefits under Labour’s cuts than originally expected
• PIP literally saved my life. Now I fear Labour’s benefit cuts will take it all away

Jackie O’Sullivan, executive director of strategy and influence at learning disability charity Mencap, said: “Today the government confirmed the choice to turn its back on thousands of disabled people and, by pushing ahead with these welfare reforms, they are causing a huge amount of anxiety.”

Labour’s plans, announced in March this year, will see the eligibility criteria tightened for the personal independence payment (PIP). 

More than 800,000 people are set to lose the daily living element of the benefit from 2026, of whom 400,000 will lose their PIP entirely.

The health element of universal credit will also be slashed in half for new claimants, frozen for current claimants and removed for claimants under the age of 22.

Liz Kendall, work and pensions secretary, said: “Our social security system is at a crossroads. Unless we reform it, more people will be denied opportunities, and it may not be there for those who need it.”

The new Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill will provide 13 weeks of additional financial security to existing claimants who are set to be impacted by the plans to tighten PIP. 

This is intended to give claimants time to adapt and access tailored employment support.

“This legislation represents a new social contract and marks the moment we take the road of compassion, opportunity and dignity,” Kendall added.

“This will give people peace of mind, while also fixing our broken social security system so it supports those who can work to do so while protecting those who cannot.”

Yet charities argue this delay will do little to prevent people from being plunged into poverty in the long-term.

James Taylor, director of strategy at disability equality charity Scope, said: “This bill will be catastrophic for disabled people. It will have a devastating effect on disabled people’s health, ability to live independently or work.”

He added that a transition period will only “temporarily delay a cut and disabled people will continue to be living with extra costs when it comes to an end”. 

Mikey Erhardt, campaigner at Disability Rights UK, agreed, saying: “The government is asking MPs to make indiscriminate and dangerous cuts which no minor mitigation or concession can make safe. It won’t help any MPs’ disabled constituents if they end up losing thousands of pounds they need – if it happens after 13 weeks instead of just a couple.

“Ultimately, any MP who thinks it’s OK to vote through these cuts because of a tapering-off period of support is being taken for a ride by the government.”

Mencap’s recent survey of people with a learning disability found that 70% would have to cut down on food if they lost PIP, while more than half (60%) said they would need to cut back on heating. Nearly half were worried they would be unable to leave their home.

O’Sullivan said: “These stats paint a very grave picture of what’s to come for those who will lose PIP under the government’s plans. The government needs to go back to the drawing board to work with disabled people on fixing the issues with the social security system in a way that does not leave anyone worse off.” 

Other changes announced in the bill include protecting 200,000 people with the most severe, lifelong conditions from reassessment for the health element of universal credit.

It also reiterates plans to increase the standard rate of universal credit and for a £1 billion employment support package to help people get into work.

However, Minesh Patel, associate director of policy and influencing at mental health charity Mind, said: “Any positive aspects of the UK government’s approach is undermined by plans to remove or reduce PIP for many people with mental health problems. 

“Without this lifeline, more people will be pushed into poverty, worsening their mental health and making it harder to enter and stay in work.”

Mind is calling on MPs to oppose these measures and for the UK government to “recognise the devastating impact these cuts will have on disabled people”. 

James Watson-O’Neill, chief executive of the disability charity Sense, said the proposed cuts to disability benefits will push “thousands further into poverty, hardship, and isolation”. 

The government’s own estimates suggest that 250,000 people will be pushed into poverty as a result of the cuts – but some research goes further. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has warned that as many as 400,000 could be forced into poverty by the cuts.

“Many disabled people already find themselves in debt because current benefits don’t stretch far enough. Cutting support further at a time when the cost of living remains high is not only unjust — it is cruel,” Watson-O’Neill said.

Sense is calling on MPs to “listen to disabled people and reject this legislation”. 

More than 40 Labour MPs wrote to the prime minister in May demanding that there be a “change in direction” away from the disability benefit cuts which they said are “impossible to support”.

Meanwhile, this week, 15 Labour MPs gathered for a photo-call confirming that they would be voting against the proposed changes to disability benefits. It is believed that more Labour MPs will rebel against their government in the upcoming vote.

Anela Anwar, chief executive of anti-poverty charity Z2K, said: “A range of MPs have been raising serious concerns about the plans. But the publication of today’s Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill shows that the government is just not listening. 

“Instead of making any concessions, it is pushing ahead in full with plans that will see people with the highest support needs, including double amputees, stroke survivors and people with psychosis, lose up to a third of their income.”

The Learning and Work Institute found that the government’s employment support measures would help just 45,000 to 95,000 more disabled people into work. That is between 1% and 3% of the people having their benefits cut.

Iain Porter, senior policy adviser at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, said: “The government is asking MPs to vote on legislation without being given the whole picture. Ministers still can’t say how many of those who will lose thousands of pounds a year they expect to find work.

“Our evidence suggests that the numbers will pale into insignificance compared to those who lost out due to the cuts. There has also been no proper assessment of the poverty impact of this bill or its unintended consequences which may increase costs elsewhere, including further strain on the NHS.   

“MPs must use their parliamentary power to resist efforts to pass this legislation until they have a full understanding of what it is they are voting for.” 

Promises are easy to break. Sign Big Issue’s petition for a Poverty Zero law and help us make tackling poverty a legal requirement, not just a policy priority.

Do you have a story to tell or opinions to share about this? Get in touch and tell us more. Big Issue exists to give homeless and marginalised people the opportunity to earn an income. To support our work buy a copy of the magazine or get the app from the App Store or Google Play.