The UK government is under increasing pressure from backbench MPs to reconsider its proposed cuts to disability benefits, including Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and Universal Credit, following the reinstatement of the £300 Winter Fuel Payment.
MPs are urging the government to reconsider these cuts, citing concerns over their impact on vulnerable individuals, particularly disabled people. The reinstatement of the Winter Fuel Payment, a key support measure for pensioners, has sparked renewed discussions on the fairness of reducing other forms of support.
According to the Birmingham Mail, the government’s proposed changes to PIP could significantly reduce support for those who rely on it for daily living expenses.
Government Under Scrutiny
In the wake of the government’s decision to reinstate the Winter Fuel Payment, which helps pensioners with energy costs, backbenchers are calling for similar consideration regarding cuts to benefits for disabled individuals.
Nadia Whittome, Labour MP for Nottingham East, was among those voicing concerns, urging ministers not to repeat what she described as a past mistake with PIP reductions.
Whittome emphasized that while she was not asking for the status quo to remain or for a halt in efforts to support people into work, she strongly opposed the idea of cutting benefits for disabled people. On Monday, after the £300 payment was reinstated, Whittome said, “I’m simply asking him not to cut disabled people’s benefits.”
Pensions Minister Defends Government Position
In response, Torsten Bell, the pensions minister, who also works within the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and the Treasury, stated that the number of people receiving PIP is expected to grow year after year, despite the proposed changes.
Bell’s exact words were that the number of recipients “continue to grow every single year in the years ahead, after the changes set out by this Government.”
Bell also pointed out that, under the government’s planned changes, individuals who score the lowest points in daily living activities on the PIP assessment could lose their entitlement in the future.
This has sparked concerns that vulnerable people could face further financial strain.
This means that people who only score the lowest points on each of the PIP daily living activities will lose their entitlement in future -the document noted.
Mps Call for Lessons to Be Learned
Another key figure, Richard Burgon, Labour MP for Leeds East, welcomed the government’s shift in stance regarding the Winter Fuel Payment.
However, Burgon cautioned that the government must listen to backbench MPs to avoid repeating past mistakes.
He stressed the importance of considering feedback from across the political spectrum to ensure that future decisions are in the best interest of the public, especially those who rely on disability benefits.
Burgon warned,
If the minister and the Government listen to backbenchers, that can help the Government get it right, help the Government avoid getting it wrong, and so what we don’t want is to be here in a year or two’s time with a minister sent to the despatch box after not listening to backbenchers on disability benefit cuts, making another U-turn again.
The Government’s Response
In his remarks, Bell acknowledged that listening to backbenchers and frontbenchers alike was important.
However, he also criticized the opposition, particularly Labour MPs, for what he described as an inability to offer concrete solutions for tackling public service issues, while simultaneously calling for more spending without endorsing necessary tax hikes.
Bell argued that Labour MPs want to see a Labour Government reducing child poverty, but said,
What Labour MPs want to see is a Government that can take the responsible decisions, including difficult ones on tax and on means testing the winter fuel payment so that we can invest in public services and turn around the disgrace that has become Britain’s public realm for far too long.
He also stated,
This is a party opposite that has learned no lessons whatsoever, that thinks it can come to this chamber, call for more spending, oppose every tax rise and expect to ever be taken seriously again – they will not.
