Rachel Reeves said in her autumn statement that Labour had “inherited the last government’s plans to reform the work capability assessment” and “will deliver those savings as part of our fundamental reforms to the health and disability benefits system”.
Following the High Court ruling, a DWP spokesperson confirmed: “The judge has found the previous government failed to adequately explain their proposals.
“As part of wider reforms that help people into work and ensure fiscal sustainability, the government will re-consult on the work capability assessment descriptor changes, addressing the shortcomings in the previous consultation, in light of the judgment.
“The government intends to deliver the full level of savings in the public finances forecasts.”
It is not clear exactly how the government intends to make these savings or whether it will consult on all the proposals included in the original plans.
However, Labour ministers have repeatedly pledged to slash disability benefits and drive more people with long-term health conditions into work, with a record 2.8 million people out of work due to long-term sickness.
Prime minister Keir Starmer told The Sun that his government “will be ruthless with cuts if that’s what’s necessary” just a day after the judicial review. He reportedly said on Friday (17 January) that Labour had the “balls” to slash benefits.
The High Court ruling does not mean that the government cannot introduce the same reforms as the Conservatives had planned, simply that it will be difficult to do so without a further consultation.
Ayla Ozmen, director of policy and campaigns at anti-poverty charity, Z2K, said: “When the government re-consults on the proposals, it will simply be clearer on the real driver of these reforms – cost-cutting.
“If taken forward, the impact of these proposals could be devastating and would undermine the government’s own commitments on poverty. The changes would inevitably increase absolute poverty among disabled people.”
More than two-thirds of people using food banks are disabled, according to statistics from Trussell.
“And one in four people who currently receive these benefits have children. So the proposals could see over 100,000 families losing access to vital payments of over £400 a month – an even worse reduction in income on an individual level than the two-child limit imposes,” Ozmen added.
Previous figures from the DWP showed that a total of 424,000 fewer people are expected to be assessed as having limited capability for work and work-related activity by 2028/2029 as a result of reforms proposed by the Conservatives. This would save the government an estimated £3bn.
David Southgate, policy manager at disability equality charity Scope, said: “It’s good that the previous government has been called out for its mistakes. Proposed changes to the work capability assessment were only about saving money not meaningful change.
“This behaviour did occur under a previous government, but they all have a duty to disabled Britons to uphold the law. Life costs a lot more when you’re disabled, and cutting support to those who need it most will lead to even more disabled people living in poverty.
“There is already so much anxiety and uncertainty about what is happening with benefits reform. The current government must take forward these lessons to the next consultation, and work with disabled people to fix our broken benefits system.”
Big Issue previously spoke to disabled people who are facing anxiety because of the reported plans to cut benefits, describing how the uncertainty is worsening their mental and physical health.
Evan John, policy advisor at the national disability charity Sense, said: “We have called repeatedly for the government to abandon plans to slash the welfare bill by £3bn – and to realise that disabled households are living in crisis and need more financial support, not less.”
Sense research has found that benefits “barely cover the essentials” for some claimants, with 43% of people with complex disabilities in debt and struggling to afford their basic costs like food and heating.
“Too many disabled people are facing impossible choices every single day about whether to eat, keep their homes warm or pay to run vital medical equipment,” John added.
“Regardless, the government is pressing ahead with a consultation around plans to cut the benefits bill. So we need disabled people’s views to be very carefully listened to, then acted upon.”
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