The government claims disability organisations support its welfare reform agenda and say disabled people are protected from cuts. These 2 myths need debunking.
Neil Coyle is the director of policy and campaigns at Disability Rights UK and a Labour councillor and Deputy Cabinet Member for Welfare in Southwark
The prime minister has claimed disability organisations support his government’s welfare reform agenda – and the DWP Minister for Disabled People has suggested disabled people are protected from cuts.
These two myths need debunking.
Firstly, many disability organisations do support welfare reform which delivers improvements in the way benefits are delivered or which cut the bureaucracy involved. Some aspects of current reforms deserve support – for example the taper in Universal Credit which allows people to keep more of their earned income when starting work.
But there is no disability organisation supporting the total package of government reform because the combined effect is catastrophic.
Just a quick recap on some headline figures:
• 100,000 disabled children to lose under Universal Credit;
• 600,000 disabled people 16-64 years of age to lose Disability Living Allowance (DLA); and
• 300,000 disabled people to be cut off from all out of work support after just 365 days despite 75% receiving regular NHS treatment.
So it’s no surprise the most representative group – the Disability Benefits Consortium (almost 60 national disability, advice and welfare-focused organisations) – doesn’t support the government agenda. Nor is it a surprise the prime minister can’t name any relevant, representative organisation which does. If there was such an organisation ministers would name it.
Secondly, DWP minister Esther McVey suggests disabled people are protected from the cuts. Saying this may make the minister feel better about making drastic reductions in support but it is somewhat undermined by the statistics above.
Usually, ministers suggest disabled people ‘with the highest needs’ are protected but here’s two points showing how even this is inaccurate:
• The government has confirmed that the Independent Living Fund (ILF) will close in 2015 – the ILF supports 19,000 disabled people with the highest care needs to live independently; and
• Under the abolition of DLA and introduction of the restrictive Personal Independence Payment, 430,000 disabled people with the highest mobility support needs lose out.
Ministers must come clean about the lack of support for the cuts it is imposing on disabled people. Sadly, we are about to witness a vast rise in poverty and social exclusion for disabled people, and, with an NHS and councils also facing a significant squeeze, the ability of the state to proffer alternative assistance is reduced. With charities also facing a tough financial climate and unable to fill the gap, the future is far from bright for disabled people in the UK.
But the government is refusing to assess the impact fully – as requested by Disability Rights UK, carers’ organisations, the Joint Committee on Human Rights, Labour and an e-petition. The reason appears to be ministers are in denial.
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60 Responses to “The government is in denial over the impact of cuts on disabled people”
Newsbot9
His grasp of economics is irrelevant, he’s shilling.
He refuses to admit the fact that known bets are not “off the books”, etc.
Newsbot9
His grasp of economics is irrelevant, he’s shilling.
He refuses to admit the fact that known bets are not “off the books”, etc.
Newsbot9
His grasp of economics is irrelevant, he’s shilling.
He refuses to admit the fact that known bets are not “off the books”, etc.
Newsbot9
That’s right, as long as you refuse to pay, preferring to have the poor suffer…
And yes, I’m sure you want to lose the UK a net million jobs by closing the borders. Immediately, we lose 25% of our GDP, and welfare needs soar. You flee abroad.
Back in reality, the tax is, of course, 1.2k for minimum wage workers, the very people who repel you and who you keep on lying about…you can’t stop calling for no minimum wage!
The retirement money is out of current funds, of course, you’re simply determined to murder the elderly. And of course you refuse to admit that nobody is “doing well” except your 1%, as the death toll rises.
LB
Last month. Year on year spending ignoring debt payments, was up 7.6%.
What cuts? If overall spending is up, that means that some areas of government spending must be rocketing, It can’t be the unemployed because I keep being told they get peanuts in benefits.eg. 50 quid a week. Or is that complete spin?
Tax revenues, down 12.3%.
So your plan, and Osbourne’s of raising taxes, isn’t working.
Spending more, isn’t working.
The borrowing is rocketing,
The true debt is escalating even father.
The banking crisis went tits up because people didn’t pay their debts, and it cascaded.
Now the biggest debtors are the states. All of the western ones.
Greece is the canary.
So what you’ve ignored is the amount of debt that the state has for the state pensions. Why would you ignore that the state has spent everyone’s pension money, and can’t afford to pay out what was promised?
Why ignore that if people had been allowed to invest, they would have 500% more pension that the state has promised, but won’t deliver?
Would you perhaps be a state worker dependent on the scam carrying on for your living and your pension?