Analysis by the Dept. of Work and Pensions, (DWP) has revealed that the Government’s planned reforms of disability benefits will plunge 250,000 people, including 50,000 children, into poverty by the end of the decade.
The Chancellor’s unexpected decision to halve the Limited Capability for Work and Work-Related Activity (LCWRA) element of Universal Credit for new claimants, coupled with a freeze in the payments until 2030, has ignited widespread concern. This announcement follows closely on the heels of tightened eligibility criteria for Personal Independence Payment (PIP), which was announced last week by Liz Kendall
The newly released impact assessment further illustrates the severity of these reforms, indicating that approximately 3.2 million families will experience an average annual loss of £1,720.
Richard Burgon MP (Lab) called the planned reforms of disability benefits as a “cruel choice” by Rachel Reeves.
He said
“Making cuts instead of taxing wealth is a political choice, and taking away the personal independence payments from so many disabled people is an especially cruel choice.
“A disabled person who can’t cut up their own food without assistance, and can’t go to the toilet without assistance, and can’t wash themselves without assistance will lose their personal independence payment.
“So hasn’t the government on this taken the easy option of cutting support for disabled people rather than the braver option which would be to tax the wealthiest through a wealth tax?”
This criticism was reiterated by the Co-Leader of The Green Party, Adrian Ramsay MP, who called the reforms “morally repugnant.”
He said,
“The Chancellor had a choice today. To rebalance our economy by asking the very wealthiest to contribute more, or to remove vital support from ill and disabled people. That she chose to take from the most vulnerable to balance her books is a damning reflection of how out of touch this government is. It is morally repugnant.”
He continued, “And it’s not just ill and disabled people who will suffer as the Chancellor doubles down on cuts to frontline services. This will weaken our communities and leave us all poorer. Labour once claimed that they were for the many, not the few – it’s clear now that this is no longer the case.”
What are the planned changes?
Personal Independence Payments (PIP) eligibility will be restricted
PIP has two elements – a daily living and mobility element. The Government plans to tighten the assessment for the daily living element of PIP.
The BBC describe the changes as:
Under the government’s proposals, assessments for the daily living part will be tightened, which the official forecaster – the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) – says will affect around 800,000 people.
Pip assessments involve questions about tasks like preparing and eating food, washing and getting dressed. Each is scored on a scale from zero – for no difficulty – to 12 – for the most severe – by a health professional.
From November 2026, the government says people will need to score at least four points for one activity, instead of qualifying for support with a score that could describe less severe difficulties (ones and twos) across a broad range of tasks.
The government plans more frequent reassessments for many people claiming Pip. However, those with the highest levels of a permanent condition or disability will no longer face reassessment.
Health Element of Universal Credit to be halved for new claimants
The new reforms will see changes to the amount of money paid to people who can not work due to illness or disability
MoneySavingExperts describe the changes as,
The health element (which you get if you can’t work because of sickness or disability), will change as follows:
a) For NEW claimants, from April 2026, this element will be almost halved, from £97 a week in 2024/25 to £50 a week in 2026/27, and then frozen at this level until 2029/30.
However, the Government says that those with the most severe, life-long health conditions – who have no prospect of improvement and will never be able to work – will “see their incomes protected through an additional premium”.
b) For EXISTING claimants, the health element will be frozen at the current rate of £97 a week until 2029/30.
To see all the planned changes to sickness and disability benefits, please click here
