Government plans to cut DLA could cause extreme hardship

Public Services

Today sees the second National Protest Day against the significant cuts sick and disabled people face to their support, writes Sue Marsh.

Sue Marsh campaigns to raise awareness of hidden disabilities and long term illness; she set up the blog Diary of a Benefit Scrounger to raise awareness of life with a chronic illness

Today sees the second National Protest Day against the significant cuts sick and disabled people face to their support. The protests are focussed on ATOS Origin offices, the company responsible for assessing a claimant’s ability to work. Assessments are carried out by “medical professionals” who are not required to be nurses or doctors and a recent Compass report showed that the assessment process was “unfit for purpose” with 35 per cent of cases going to appeal and up to 70% of those appeals being upheld.

ATOS are paid according to how many people they assess as fit, and just 9% of those previously considered unable to work are now being found incapable of any work at all.

Around 60% are projected to be taken of Employment Support Allowance (ESA, previously Incapacity Benefit) within one year. Claimants placed in the “Work Capability Group” with working partners will now need to find work within one year or all of their benefits will be withdrawn – a loss of nearly £5,000.

The other main disability benefit, Disability Living Allowance (DLA) is now to be targeted by the government with ATOS also being asked to assess their capability to work. The government hope that 20% of those currently needing to claim DLA will have their benefit stopped.

What’s more, proposals include stopping mobility support for adults in residential care, leaving some unable to leave their homes. Mobility would become based on “ability to mobilise” rather than to walk, hypothetically meaning that  paralympians could be defined as fully mobile.

DLA is not an out of work benefit. It acknowledges the extra difficulties sick and disabled people face to compete on a level playing field with the able-bodied, yet according to this report, compiled for the DWP, the government do not even keep records on how many DLA recipients work.

The report does state, however, that

“DLA recipients, who get DLA but no other benefits, appear to have the highest rates of employment, regardless of the severity of disability.”

The DLA forms state that DLA will usually only be paid in the following circumstances:

*You need help with dialysis at home… at least twice a week;

*You are 100% blind and 80% deaf and you need someone with you while you are outdoors;

*You have had both legs amputated at or above the ankle or were born without legs or feet;

*You are severely mentally impaired with severe behavioural problems and need help with personal care day and night.

It concludes by saying that you are not likely to qualify for DLA if these criteria do not apply, but may still fill out the claim form.

Given how difficult DLA is to claim – the form is 39 pages long with 62 questions, and must be accompanied by reports from medical professionals – and the low fraud rates of less than 1% quoted in the DWP’s own figures, it seems impossible to conclude how the government will legitimately cut numbers by up to a fifth without causing extreme hardship.

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64 Responses to “Government plans to cut DLA could cause extreme hardship”

  1. tina lee

    hi can you help me to help a neighbour, she needs help with her dla forms, is there any one in the wallasey, merseyside area to help, i appreciate any advice, many thanks tina.

  2. carole cliffe

    When my son developed epilespy the impact on normal life was awesome both of us were affected as was my employer. As a single parent trying to give a consistant work pattern was nigh on impossible and medication did not resolve the issue so for a whole period you are in no mans land and benefits are so inflexible they don’t offer the practical support required I question why are we penalised in this way merely becuase we offer support to a loved one and why does society label us all in this manner ..because they don’t understand we need more visual documentaries to get over why the help is needed.

  3. Sue Marsh

    @johnmcdonnellMP Wow! Tx so much!! I wrote : https://www.leftfootforward.org/2011/01/dla-cuts-could-cause-extreme-hardship/ But MPs silent.

  4. Craig Lundie

    Labour aren’t angry, Eddy Boyband. Ed Miliband and Iain Gray levered in a photoshoot at Atos Origin’s regional headquarters in

    Livingston two days before this protest was due to take place.

    http://edinunianticuts.wordpress.com/2011/01/25/atos-origi-disability-benefits-protest/#comment-194

    As you can read at the links below, they loudly proclaimed their support for a charity for war disabled the same day as they visited Atos Livingston headquarters last Friday, knowing full well that a protest organised by Black Triangle and Right To Work was scheduled for the following Monday morning at the same building. If you tried the first link, you’ll know that five vans of police patrolled the area and perimeter of the site. Why would they be doing that on a dreich Monday morning in January, do you think?

    You can see the Scottish Labour Party in action here:
    http://www.zimbio.com/pictures/lZEXo_HozEn/Ed+Miliband+Scottish+Labour+Leader+Iain+Gray
    http://www.scottishlabour.org.uk/iain-gray-and-ed-miliband-visit-veterans-charity
    http://news.scotsman.com/edinburgh/Ed-Miliband-joins-fight-to.6699121.jp

    I recommend the Black Triangle facebook page if you want information on Atos Macht Frei.

  5. Broken OfBritain

    RT @suey2y: @johnmcdonnellMP Wow! Tx so much!! I wrote : https://www.leftfootforward.org/2011/01/dla-cuts-could-cause-extreme-hardship/ …

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