The UK Government has unveiled a sweeping package of benefit reforms aimed at making savings of £5bn by 2030.
It includes changes to Universal Credit and job seekers allowance as well as new, stricter eligibility requirements for sick and disabled people receiving Personal Independence Payments (PIP). Labour is also set to raise the age at which people can claim PIP to 22.
Major reforms include
-
Scrapping the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) - Stricter eligibility requirements for sick and disabled people receiving Personal Independence Payments (PIP)
- Increasing the age at which people can claim PIP to 22
- Increasing the age at which people can get access to health top ups and Universal Credits to 22
- New unemployment insurance for those that have made National Insurance contributions
The Government is also proposing delaying access to the Universal Credit health top-up until 22 years old.
Work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall proposed the new age restrictions because she said being out of work and training when you’re young is “damaging”.
Kendall announced that the money saved on delayed health top-ups for young people would be reinvested into work support and training opportunities.
“This Government is ambitious for our people and our country,” Kendall told the Commons on Tuesday.
“We believe that unleashing the talents of the British people is the key to our future success but the social security system we inherited from the Conservatives is failing the very people it is supposed to help and holding our country back.”
She added: “We want to make fundamental changes to the structure of social security to support our goal of a decisively more pro-work system.”
With one in every ten working-age people in Britain claiming at least one type of health or disability benefit, Kendall said the Government must make changes.
“There will always be people who cannot work due to the severity of their disability or health condition, alongside those who will legitimately be out of work for short periods of time,” Kendall said.
“There will always, and should always be, a safety net for those in genuine need. However, we must grasp the nettle and decisively reshape the benefits system towards being more proactive, more pro-work and sustainable.”
Despite the sweeping changes proposed in the Labour party’s Green Paper on Tuesday, the reforms are not as damaging as originally feared by charities and campaign groups.
It was previously rumoured that Labour was considering freezing PIP payments for disabled people across the country. These plans have seemingly been scrapped.
The reforms had been widely anticipated with SNP leaders criticising the UK Government for “deliberately fuelling speculation” in the media about its intentions.
There were rumours that the plans were stripped back and watered down in light of strong opposition from loyal Labour MPs.
The changes were criticised by the SNP, which urged Prime Minister Keir Starmer to “do the right thing” and “abandon cuts to disabled people”.
The full impact of these changes will be examined in more detail as the proposals move through the Chambers of government.
‘Pulling the rug from those on the brink of poverty’
Reaction from third sector charities and organisations has been swift and critical.
The Health and Social Care Alliance Scotland (the ALLIANCE) said the reforms would cause confusion and risk the values of Scotland’s social security system.
“We are concerned today’s announcement appears designed to remove income from thousands of people in Scotland who are unable to work due to an impairment or long term condition,” Sara Redmond, chief officer at the Alliance, said.
Far from being ‘trapped on benefits’, Ms Redmond said social security provides essential support to provide an adequate standard of living for people with illness and disabilities.
“Progress towards reducing the disability employment gap needs to focus on removing barriers and promoting inclusive workplace initiatives, not making people destitute, Ms Redmond said.
She added that the changes “also seem to ignore” that some disability entitlements are devolved in Scotland, which will only cause “more complexity, confusion, and put Scotland’s system at risk”.
Oxfam Scotland, a charity aimed at helping people to overcome poverty, called the Government reforms a “perverse political choice” that risks “pulling the rug from under people in or on the brink of poverty in Scotland”.
Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC), which represents over 550,000 workers through 40 trade unions and 20 trade union councils, also criticised the proposals as “punching down” and “actively making it harder for people who cannot work and who need support”.
“It’s a short-sighted, reactionary decision that will negatively impact on the Scottish Government’s Budget,” STUC general secretary Roz Foyer said.
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