New calls to scrap proposed PIP reforms after U-turn on Winter Fuel Payments
Nearly 3.7 million people on PIP will see changes to the disability benefit start from November next year.
Labour backbenchers have called for a UK Government U-turn on planned disability benefit reforms, after Chancellor Rachel Reeves restored Winter Fuel Payments to the majority of pensioners in England and Wales. Proposed changes to Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment (PIP) are set to come into force from November next year.
Ms Reeves' £1.25 billion plan unveiled on Monday will see automatic payments worth up to £300 given to pensioners with an income less than £35,000 a year. The U-turn will see an estimated 9 million people born before September 22, 1959 receive the one-off payment this winter.
Shortly after winning the general election in July, the Labour Government announced its decision to remove the universality of Winter Fuel Payments and only issue the money to those on means-tested benefits, such as Pension Credit.
Nadia Whittome, the Labour MP for Nottingham East, warned ministers they risked making a 'similar mistake' if they tighten the eligibility criteria for PIP.
Leeds East MP Richard Burgon called on pensions minister Torsten Bell to 'listen now' so that backbenchers can help the UK Government 'get it right'.
In her warning, Ms Whittome said she was not asking Mr Bell 'to keep the status quo or not to support people into work' and added: 'I'm simply asking him not to cut disabled people's benefits.'
The Pensions Minister, who works in both the Treasury and Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), replied that the numbers of people receiving PIP is set to 'continue to grow every single year in the years ahead, after the changes set out by this Government'.
In its Pathways to Work Green Paper, the UK Government proposed a new eligibility requirement, so PIP claimants must score a minimum of four points on one daily living activity, such as preparing food, washing and bathing, using the toilet or reading, to receive the daily living element of the benefit.
The Green Paper states: 'This means that people who only score the lowest points on each of the PIP daily living activities will lose their entitlement in future.'
Mr Burgon told the Commons: 'As a Labour MP who voted against the Winter Fuel Payment cuts, I very much welcome this change in position, but can I urge the minister and the Government to learn the lessons of this and one of the lessons is, listen to backbenchers?
'If the minister and the Government listen to backbenchers, that can help the Government get it right, help the Government avoid getting it wrong, and so what we don't want is to be here in a year or two's time with a minister sent to the despatch box after not listening to backbenchers on disability benefit cuts, making another U-turn again.'
Mr Bell replied that it was 'important to listen to backbenchers, to frontbenchers'.
Opposition MPs cheered when the minister added: 'It's even important to listen to members opposite on occasion.'
Liberal Democrat MP Mike Martin warned that 'judging by the questions from his own backbenchers, it seems that we're going to have further U-turns on PIP and on the two-child benefit cap'.
The Tunbridge Wells MP asked Mr Bell: 'To save his colleagues anguish, will he let us know now when those U-turns are coming?'
The minister replied: 'What Labour MPs want to see is a Labour Government bringing down child poverty, and that's what we're going to do
'What Labour MPs want to see is a Government that can take the responsible decisions, including difficult ones on tax and on means testing the winter fuel payment so that we can invest in public services and turn around the disgrace that has become Britain's public realm for far too long.'
On Monday, Rachel Reeves said the UK Government would 'crack on' with reforms to PIP.
Asked whether there would be more U-turns on PIP or the Child Benefit cap, the Chancellor told Channel 4 News: 'There are 9 million people of working age who are economically inactive. We need to reduce that number.
'We need to provide much better support for people who are sick and disabled to help them back into work.
'These are important reforms that we are going to crack on with, because we need to ensure that as a government we support people to do fulfilling work to help lift families out of poverty and give everybody who can work the dignity of a secure job paying a decent wage.'
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.
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