The scale of the Government’s ambition when it comes to welfare reform is becoming clearer, as Chancellor Rachel Reeves seeks to control rising public spending and avoid further tax cuts.
Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall said earlier this week that the health and disability benefits system was “broken” and failed to support people into work. She promised to launch “radical” reforms in spring.
'I get PIP - if Labour cuts my benefit I won't even be able to leave my house'
Read MoreSo what exactly is the Government looking at, which options will ministers most likely land on, and how controversial will they prove to be with claimants, campaigners and Labour’s left-wing base?
Existing Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) plans launched under the Conservatives would push more than 450,000 claimants currently judged unable to work, and not required to look for work, into engaging in a job search.
Labour has said it is committed to making the same level of cuts – saving £5.4bn by 2029-30 – but has vowed to set out its own changes to the WCA as part of the green paper expected in March.
Sir Stephen Timms, the DWP minister for disability, said neurodivergent people on benefits will get more help to find employment. Writing in The i Paper, Sir Stephen said a new panel will advise on how to tear down barriers faced by people with neurodiversity who want to work.
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Scrapping the LCWRA category could mean even more people are forced to look for work and lose out on £417 a month. And it could result in even greater savings for the Treasury.
Disability charities and campaigners would bitterly oppose any Labour push to go further than the Tories, having described the previous Government’s proposals as “devastating” and “cruel”.
The Treasury and No 10 are reportedly frustrated that Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall is not coming up with reforms quickly enough (Photo: Wiktor Szymanowicz/Future Publishing/Getty)
PIP changes could be even more controversial. Any moves to restrict access to the support payments, which help disabled people with mobility and day-to-day living needs, are sure to spark outrage with campaigners.
The shift would build on proposals previously put forward by the Conservative Government. Former Tory Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride had said disability benefits should not be for those feeling “a little bit depressed”.
Cutting access to PIP could prove the most difficult change to make. PIP is a disability benefit not tied to work, with people claiming it while holding full-time or part-time jobs.
Labour backbenchers have previously told The i Paper that disability benefit cuts could spark a major revolt in the Commons. “You could see a very big rebellion materialising,” one MP warned.
One-off PIP payments
However, they are said to considering one-off cash payments for specific things when they are needed by PIP claimants, instead of providing a regular, monthly amount of money.
Cutting PIP as a regular part of disabled people’s income will also be hotly disputed. Claimants have complained that one-off vouchers could not possibly cover all their needs, and the same arguments will be made for one-off cash payments.
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Read MoreMore regular assessments
Ministers are also reportedly mulling over whether to scrap the WCA to align the fitness-to-work tests more closely with the assessments used to approve PIP.
This would provide little comfort to campaigners, since both processes have been subjected to fierce criticism and claims they are set up to “catch people out”.
More regular tests would also be fiercely opposed by disability groups, who say re-assessments already cause a lot of stress and anxiety.
But David Southgate, policy manager at disability charity Scope, told The i Paper that lengthy consultations meant it was “unlikely” PIP and WCA changes could be implemented until 2026.
DWP sources did not deny that there were plans to change PIP as well as the WCA, but told The i Paper that reported ideas were only “speculation”, with nothing decided yet.
They promised to work with disabled people and their organisation, and said the plans to be announced in the spring “will ensure the health and disability benefit system is fit for purpose, fair on the taxpayer and delivers the right support to the right people”.
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