Yahoo News PIP campaigners call for Labour to 'fix failing benefits system' after landslide victory
Campaigners have urged the new Labour Government to "fix the failing benefits system." Sir Keir Starmer will be the UK's new Labour prime minister after his party secured a landslide victory at the General Election - it has 412 seats at the time of publication - in what was a brutal night for the Conservatives with Rishi Sunak making his resignation speech this morning.
A consultation into proposed changes to Personal Independence Payment - the main disability benefit for people of working age - will finish on July 22, three weeks after the election result. The Department for Work and Pensions announced plans under the Tories for a radical reform of PIP to curb spiralling costs. Among the measures suggested is replacing cash payments with vouchers for equipment and treatment.
Labour has said it will study the Green Paper and the feedback submitted by disabled people and activists but has not mentioned PIP specifically in its manifesto. It does say, however, that it will bring in a "proper plan to support disabled people to work."
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Disability campaigners have criticised the plans to scrap PIP's payments of up to £737 a month and say a brand new approach to supporting disabled people must begin as Sir Keir Starmer enters No 10, ending 14 years of Conservative government.
James Taylor, director of strategy at disability equality charity Scope, said: "Change on disability equality needs to begin now. For too long disabled people's voices have been absent from our national debate. It’s now time for them to be heard by government, and it's time to seize this opportunity to build trust with the UK’s 16 million disabled people.
"It's time to tackle the extra costs of disability; to transform attitudes to disability; to make sure that those of us who want to work can do so; and, to fix our failing benefits system so that all disabled people are valued. This is the change disabled people want and deserve. We look forward to working with this new government to make it happen."
Mr Taylor had earlier said: "It's hard to have any faith that this [PIP] consultation is about anything other than cutting the benefits bill, no matter the impact. Life costs a lot more for disabled people, including people with mental health conditions.
"Threatening to take away the low amount of income PIP provides won't solve the country's problems. The government needs to end this reckless assault on disabled people and focus on how to fix the real underlying issues."
Scope launched a petition - backed by a number of other charities including Macmillan Cancer Support and Sense - telling the government to stop demonising those who cannot work, to support people who want to work to do so, and calling for "a benefits system that treats us with kindness." The petition wording says: "Proposals to curb Personal Independence Payments (PIP) and change how people are assessed as unfit for work are dangerous. They risk leaving us destitute."
Tom Waters, Associate Director at the Institute for Fiscal Studies, said: "The number of people receiving financial support from the government for a health-related benefit has increased sharply since the pandemic and is forecast to continue growing. This is one of the big drivers of the large increase in public spending since 2019 and into the next parliament. So it is understandable that whoever is in office after the election should want to take a careful look at this."
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