Disability benefit cuts will harm hundreds of thousands, MPs warn: ‘A disaster on every front’

Disability benefit cuts will have a “catastrophic” impact on disabled people, a group of MPs has warned, with some individuals set to lose almost £900 per month.

In March, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) proposed sweeping reductions to personal independence payments (PIP) and the health component of universal credit.

The plans – outlined in the Pathways to Work green paper – have been roundly slated by activists and charities.

Today (Monday 16 June), the All-Party Group (APPG) on Poverty and Inequality has joined this chorus of condemnation, warning that the cuts could make a “dire situation” for disabled people “much worse”.

Some 800,000 people could lose PIP support entirely, the report finds, with some individuals set to lose £886 per month.

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“Disabled people are already squeezed beyond belief, they’re already living in much deeper poverty [than the general population],“Siân Berry, Green Party MP and the APPG’s co-chair, told Big Issue.

“The public is being encouraged by the government to think that benefits are somehow generous or additional. They are not. Disabled people are already genuinely struggling to get by.”

The new proposals will make things much, much worse,” the Brighton and Hove representative added. “The government needs to start from scratch. It’s just a disaster on every front.”

More than 40 members of the APPG are Labour MPs. There is growing unease among the party regarding the proposals; last month, dozens signed a letter describing the welfare changes as “impossible to support”.

Last week, work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall reportedly promised “non-negotiable” protections for the most vulnerable, a tweak designed to stave off backbench revolt.

It is as yet unclear what form these safeguards will take. But one thing is certain: the level of cuts the government is planning will cause  “unprecedented hardship”, said Berry.

“The government is obsessed with spreadsheets. This is driven by them trying to make cost savings, it’s not driven by anything to do with what’s best for people concerned or wider society,” she said.

“If it’s very clear that if this goes ahead, the wider cost to society will be bigger than any money they save.”

Disabled people are already twice as likely to live in poverty as non-disabled people, with more than half of all people in poverty either being disabled or living in a household with at least one disabled person.

More than a quarter (26%) of disabled people experience food insecurity, nearly three times the rate of non-disabled people

These individuals and their families face additional barriers and costs – including higher spending on food, heating, transport and medical support – which can amount to more than £1,000 extra per month.

The government held a consultation into the changes proposed in the green paper. Responses were “overwhelmingly” opposed to cuts, the APPG found.

“The cuts/changes to eligibility for PIP will decimate my life if they go ahead. It will cost me £8,400 a year. How am I meant to survive?” one submission asked.

“It feels like it affects the value of my life, like my life isn’t worth paying for,” reads another.

Several respondents detailed a state of “deep fear” while many expressed suicidal ideation.

“Every autistic and disabled person I know is currently living in a state of deep fear, not knowing if this will be the end for us.”

Another echoes this sentiment: “In short: people will die. It remains to be seen if I’ll be one of them because, if things go ahead as planned, I don’t see a way forward.”

The government’s own estimates suggest the disability benefit cuts will push 250,000 people (including 50,000 children) into poverty.

But the true figure could be much higher. According to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, the full package of cuts could actually impoverish 400,000 people, including 100,000 children.

The government has framed the proposals as part of a “back to work” drive, with work and pensions secretary Kendall telling parliament that “millions who could work are trapped on benefits”.

But the evidence contradicts this, Berry said.

“The government line is, ‘People who can’t work should have support, and people who can work should work,’” she said. “But PIP helps so many stay in work. And they’re talking about restricting it. It doesn’t make sense.”

Resolution Foundation estimates that the government’s cuts to disability and incapacity benefits will lead to between 38,000 and 57,000 more people in paid work by 2029-30. But the increase in poverty will “undermine” Labour’s goal to increase employment.

Respondents called on the government to instead help tackle the persistent and systemic barriers disabled people face to entering the workforce.

The disability employment gap remains high at 27.8% and the disability pay gap is 17.2%

“Countless governments have said we’re going to provide work coaches and get disabled people into work. It never works. A small minority of people may get into a job, but most employers do not want us,” one respondent cited in the APPG report said.

The government needs desperately to rethink, Berry urged.

“Many people know the solution, which is to find more money through taxation to restore the social contract, the social safety net that ought to be provided by those with the broadest shoulders,” she said.

“Disabled people are not just thinking about this from their own personal point of view. They’re looking at society and going: there is a solution.”

The APPG recommends withdrawing the proposed disability benefit cuts in the green paper and increasing benefit levels to reflect real living costs and disability-related expenses.

Berry said she “hopes” her Labour parliamentary colleagues – many of whom are on the APPG – will “bravely stand up” and vote against it.

“Apart from the people leading this, Liz Kendall, her department, and the prime minister and the chancellor, there must be other cabinet members who are arguing against this. Particularly the ones whose budgets are going to be impacted by this. Local councils are going to be left to pick up the pieces of this. And so I hope Angela Rayner is providing some opposition within cabinet, at the very least.”

The government is expected to table a bill containing the cuts in the coming weeks.

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