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The UK Government has proposed a £5 billion cut to disability benefits, the largest on record. The change has been dubbed ‘non-negotiable’ and has been the subject of widespread criticism. It will be, quite literally, a death knell for many people’s independence and quality of life.
The changes are supposedly aimed at reducing incentives to stay out of work but are, in actuality, “balancing the books on the backs of sick and disabled people”. Especially the tightening of restrictions for those who receive PIP payments, which are completely unrelated to employment.
Keir Starmer’s Labour, a Labour that has continued to uphold the mantle of mending a Britain that has been ravaged by years of Conservative austerity, is hypocritical in its ‘need for short-term savings to meet fiscal rules, rather than long term reform’. In doing so, it hits lower income households hardest. The Institute for Fiscal Studies has warned a further 600,000 people would lose £2,400 annually after the 1 million that would lose support.
Dozens of MPs are already warning the Prime Minister that they are more than willing to vote against this bill and protests against the changes are being planned up and down the country. The public outrage and the influx of calls and emails to local MPs will, or at least should, be noted.
The cuts add to the already large and incredibly unjust stigma that disabled people face for not being able to work. The false image of ‘benefit scroungers’ is incredibly harmful – but that is what this bill is playing into. Many disability charities have also come out opposing the cuts, with Sense offering a template for members of the public to contact their MP with their concerns.
So, I did just that. In an email response that is almost certainly a copy and paste, Exeter’s MP Steve Race said “The welfare charity Z2K notes that 90% of claimants they have dealt with are afraid of looking for work due to the risk of losing their health-related benefits.” Ironically, this is a symptom of a larger problem: the catch 22 that many disabled people have to navigate.
These cuts are reprehensible and will impact so many people. This government has made it clear that it has no problem exploiting vulnerable people. In May, MP’s will vote on the bill and reveal the impact of public protest and widespread outrage.
Edited by: Evangeline Shankland
Image: Prime Minister Keir Starmer hosts Metro Mayors, Simon Dawson (Number 10), 2024 // Open Government License v3.0
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