DWP ‘considering' how proposed PIP eligibility changes will affect claimants over state Pension age
Reforms to PIP eligibility and assessments are due to start from November next year.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is set to introduce new changes to eligibility and assessments for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) from November 2026. The welfare reforms will be applied to all new claims while some of the 3.7 million people currently in receipt of the disability benefit may see changes to their award at their next review, after November 2026.
Minister for Social Security and Disability Sir Stephen Timms, has previously stated that people of State Pension age in receipt of PIP are 'not expected to be affected by the proposed changes'.
However, in a written response to SNP Chris Law, the DWP Minister said that the Department is 'considering further how the four-point minimum requirement (for the daily living component) will affect claimants over State Pension age who report a change of circumstances.'
Sir Stephen's comments came after the Dundee Central MP asked questions relating specifically to the impact of planned reforms for pensioners on PIP.
The latest figures from the DWP show that at the end of January, some 690,186 people aged between 65 and 79 were receiving PIP, including 2,492 living in Scotland. These claimants will transfer to Adult Disability Payment (ADP) and the Social Security Scotland system this summer.
Mr Ship asked whether the DWP policy that existing PIP claimants of State Pension age who are subject to a planned award review from November 2026 will be required to score at least four points in one daily living activity in order to maintain their award.
He also asked whether the DWP policy that existing PIP claimants of State Pension age who request a change of circumstances review from November 2026 are required to score at least four points in one daily living activity in order to either maintain and/or increase their award.
In a written response to the first question, Sir Stephen responded: 'Our intention is for the new eligibility requirement for the daily living component of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) - requiring individuals to score at least four points in a single daily living activity - to apply to new claims and award reviews from November 2026, subject to parliamentary approval.
'In line with current policy, individuals over State Pension Age are not routinely subject to full award reviews and are therefore not expected to be affected by the proposed changes.'
In a written response to the second question, Sir Stephen said: 'In keeping with existing policy, people on state pension age are not routinely fully reviewed and will not be affected by these changes.
'We are considering further how the 4-point minimum requirement will affect claimants over state pension age who report a change of circumstances, and we will provide further information in due course.'
There are currently 3.7m people across Great Britain in claim for PIP, however, the UK Government expects that figure to rise to 4m by the end of the decade and has proposed a raft of new measures to make the benefit sustainable for future generations.
Proposed PIP changes and online consultation
Proposed package of reforms to overhaul the welfare system, include:
Ending reassessments for disabled people who will never be able to work and people with lifelong conditions to ensure they can live with dignity and security.
Scrapping the Work Capability Assessment to end the process that drives people into dependency, delivering on the UK Government's manifesto commitment to reform or replace it.
Providing improved employment support backed by £1 billion including new tailored support conversations for people on health and disability benefits to break down barriers and unlock work.
Legislating to protect those on health and disability benefits from reassessment or losing their payments if they take a chance on work.
To ensure the welfare system is available for those with the greatest needs now and in the future, the UK Government has made decisions to improve its sustainability and protect those who need it most.
These include:
Reintroducing reassessments for people on incapacity benefits who have the capability to work to ensure they have the right support and are not written off.
Targeting PIP for those with higher needs by changing the eligibility requirement to a minimum score of four on at least one of the daily living activities to receive the daily living element of the benefit, in addition to the existing eligibility criteria.
Rebalancing payment levels in Universal Credit to improve the Standard Allowance.
Consulting on delaying access to the health element of Universal Credit until someone is aged 22 and reinvesting savings into work support and training opportunities through the Youth Guarantee.
DWP also launched an online consultation on the new proposals to coincide with the publication of the Green paper.
The consultation can be completed by anyone and is open until June 30, 2025 - you can find full details on GOV.UK here.
It's important to be aware that the proposed reforms announced by the DWP will not directly affect disability claimants in Scotland currently claiming devolved health-related benefits - unless funding for the Scottish Government is impacted by planned changes by Westminster.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The National
19 hours ago
- The National
Heat gets to MPs' heads as they daydream about ousting Keir Starmer
IT feels increasingly like people are not as switched on in Westminster this weather as perhaps they should be. It may be the heat. My office has the keen disadvantage of catching the sun just as it begins its westward descent towards the end of the day. It could not get hotter unless we had a sunroof installed to catch the midday rays. Has it gone to everyone's heads? Commentators who usually complain about the snail pace of legislation have turned to bemoaning how two major pieces of social change enacted in Westminster this week – the decriminalisation of abortion and the passage of the assisted suicide bill – were rushed. This is not a comment on the merits of either topic, merely a reaffirmation of the veracity of the truism: 'You can't please all the people all the time.' Someone who is finding it difficult to please anyone any of the time is Keir Starmer. His buddy Donald Trump (above) seemed to tire quickly of the Prime Minister's company at the G7 summit this week, leaving abruptly with ominous threats that he could bomb Iran at any moment. Starmer is busy pleading for de-escalation, meanwhile arranging the evacuation of British citizens from Tel Aviv – giving the distinct impression the PM rates peace's chances none too highly. READ MORE: Lisa Nandy 'either dishonest or ignorant' after benefits cuts claim On the home front, he hardly fares better. Vicky Foxcroft whipped her last this week when she dramatically quit on Thursday night, saying she could not back benefits cuts. Department for Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall (below) says that the cuts, expected to save £5 billion, would save the benefits system – worth a cool £326bn, all told – from collapse. Square those sums, if you can. Labour MPs for the most part seem fairly sanguine with the prospect of their official forecast that 250,000 people, including 50,000 children, will be plunged into poverty by the changes. Some have grown a spine, or were lucky enough to have been born with one, and have criticised the cuts. Over them hangs the threat of being 'blacklisted' for government jobs in the future. So much for the 'biggest upgrade to workers' rights in a generation'. One MP, far from a fan of the Prime Minister, told me this week that they reckon Starmer's time will come – and soon. There are murmurs – falling short of outright chatter – about who would replace Starmer when the men in red ties come for him. But that's getting ahead of ourselves, if you care for my opinion. Does this limp crop of Labour MPs even have it in them to do the necessary scheming to plot an insurgency? Say what you want about the Tories but at least they had a taste for cloaks and daggers. Starmer's lot seem more like they'd be pushing for parental guidance for reporting on tales of political skulduggery. I think Starmer's high noon is still a long way off. You can get the Worst of Westminster delivered straight to your email inbox every Friday at 6pm for FREE by clicking here.
The National
20 hours ago
- The National
Lisa Nandy 'either dishonest or ignorant' after benefits cuts claim
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy told BBC Breakfast that her constituents feared 'coming off PIP and into work' because they worried about losing access to Personal Independence Payments if employment did not work out for them. But critics have pointed out that PIP is not related to a person's employment status, suggesting that she was either not across the detail of the benefits system or was attempting to 'deliberately mislead' the public. READ MORE: BBC issues correction after Debate Night 'bias' on eve of by-election PIP is given to people to help with the added costs of living with a disability and claimants do not have to update the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) of changes in their employment status. Interviewed about the cuts – which are expected to push 250,000 people, including 50,000 children into poverty – Nandy said: 'Lots of my constituents worry about coming off PIP and into work because it's so […] hard to go through a reassessment process, very gruelling process, in order to get back onto it. 'So one of the reforms that we're introducing is that you can try work, without risking losing your benefits and go back onto PIP if it doesn't work out without any kind of reassessment.' Lisa Nandy is either lying or has grossly misunderstood what her constitutents are saying here. PIP is NOT an out-of-work benefits. 1 in 5 people on PIP are in work. Noone on PIP WOULD EVER say this. Full stop. I will be complaining to the PCC. — Dr Jay Watts (@Shrink_at_Large) June 20, 2025 Kirsty Blackman, the SNP's DWP spokesperson, told The National: 'There are only two explanations here - either a Labour Cabinet member is wholly ignorant of the current system and the cuts to disability her government is planning or Lisa Nandy is in fact trying to deliberately mislead the public on the consequences of Keir Starmer's cuts. 'Either way it is evidence of just how desperate and detached the Labour Party has become and either way it won't wash with the public who can see these cruel cuts for what they are - an attack on the day to day lives of disabled people.' The cuts, which are expected to save around £5 billion from the £326bn total cost of the social security system, are expected to result in a substantial rebellion from Labour MPs when they go to a vote early next month. READ MORE: Do you get a free car because you are disabled? The Motability Scheme explained Government whip Vicky Foxcroft quit on Thursday evening saying she was not prepared to persuade others to vote for them – or back them herself. Others in Government are reportedly on resignation watch. Blackman added: 'With even Labour's own whips resigning because they won't vote to make disabled people poorer, the real question is if Anas Sarwar and Scottish Labour MPs are going to stay true to form and support their Prime Minister no matter the cost.' (Image: PA) Greens MSP Maggie Chapman (above) said: 'Labour MPs need to be able to explain to constituents what different benefits actually are. Lisa Nandy should know that PIP is not an out of work benefit - the clue is in the name. So, either she is being extremely dishonest, or she doesn't understand the basics of what PIP is. 'People rely on PIP to get by in their day to day lives – to help with essentials like getting washed and dressed, managing medicines, eating and drinking, and mobility. Labour wants to cut that support for 1.3 million people, throwing lives into turmoil and pushing many into poverty.' The proposed cuts include making it harder to claim PIP, in a bid to stop an estimated 400,000 people from claiming, while around 800,000 new claimants will get lower incapacity top-ups of £50 per week, down from the present £97 per week. Labour were approached for comment.
South Wales Guardian
a day ago
- South Wales Guardian
Minister insists no major welfare rebellion on the horizon after whip quits
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said Vicky Foxcroft was the only frontbencher who had spoken to her about resigning. MPs must 'look to their conscience' when deciding how to vote, Ms Nandy said, but added the Government believes the Commons will back the reforms. Lewisham North MP Ms Foxcroft said she understood 'the need to address the ever-increasing welfare bill' but did not believe the proposed cuts 'should be part of the solution', in her resignation letter to the Prime Minister. Sir Keir Starmer has faced a backlash from some Labour MPs over proposals to reform the welfare system, which are expected to save up to £5 billion a year. Ms Nandy said a 'handful' of backbench MPs had expressed concerns to her about the 'detail' of the Bill, but added she was confident the Government had listened and the package of reforms was 'absolutely right'. 'It would be wrong to say that when you bring forward big reforms, there aren't concerns and there aren't dissenting voices, of course there are. But Vicky is the only frontbencher that I've had a conversation with about resigning,' she told BBC Breakfast. She told Times Radio that Ms Foxcroft 'did the honourable thing' by standing down. 'If you can't stick with collective responsibility in Government, you have to resign. 'She's done the honourable thing. It will enable her to have a voice, and she – as the former shadow disabilities minister – is very keen to use it. 'But I think most Labour MPs, including her, agree with the principle of the reforms that we're making.' She added: 'It's now up to every MP, as it always is at moments of major reform, to look to their conscience and vote the way that they believe is right. 'And we believe this package of reforms are right and will carry the confidence of the House.' Ms Foxcroft is the second Labour frontbencher to go in protest over policy issues after Anneliese Dodds quit as development minister over cuts to the aid budget. Rebel Labour MPs welcomed Ms Foxcroft's decision, with Hartlepool's Jonathan Brash saying he had the 'utmost respect' for her 'principled stand' and Crewe and Nantwich's Connor Naismith saying it 'must have been an incredibly difficult decision but she should be commended for standing by her principles'. She said she had wrestled with whether to resign or remain in the Government and 'fight from within'. 'Sadly it… now seems that we are not going to get the changes I desperately wanted to see. 'I therefore tender my resignation as I know I will not be able to do the job that is required of me and whip – or indeed vote – for reforms which include cuts to disabled people's finances.' Legislation introduced into Parliament on Wednesday includes a tightening of the criteria for the main disability payment in England, the personal independence payment (Pip). Ministers also want to cut the sickness-related element of universal credit (UC), and delay access to it so only those aged 22 and over can claim it. The package of reforms is aimed at encouraging more people off sickness benefits and into work, but dozens of Labour rebels said last month that the proposals were 'impossible to support'. Pip is aimed at helping with extra living costs if someone has a long-term physical or mental health condition or disability and difficulty doing certain everyday tasks or getting around because of their condition. Data published on Tuesday showed 3.7 million people in England and Wales claimed Pip, up from 2.05 million in 2019, with teenagers and young adults making up a growing proportion of claimants. Around 800,000 people are set to lose out on the benefit under the Government's proposals, according to an impact assessment published alongside Wednesday's legislation. The assessment also confirmed a previous estimate that 250,000 more people, including 50,000 children, are likely to fall into relative poverty after housing costs in 2029/30, although the Government repeated this does not take into account the potentially positive impact of £1 billion annual funding by then for measures to support people into work. Ms Foxcroft received hugs and other gestures of support from her Labour backbench colleagues as she appeared in the Commons on Friday as MPs took part in votes on the assisted dying Bill. Several colleagues approached her, offering warm words, hugs, an arm on the shoulder or a pat on the back. Responding to her resignation, a Government spokesperson said: 'This Labour Government was elected to deliver change. The broken welfare system we inherited is failing the sick and most vulnerable and holding too many young people back. It is fair and responsible to fix it. 'Our principled reforms will ensure those who can work should, that those who want to work are properly supported, and that those with most severe disabilities and health conditions are protected.'
