LABOUR have announced a £5 billion package of welfare cuts, with a huge number of people now set to be denied the Personal Independence Payment (PIP).
Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall outlined the UK Government's controversial plans to reform welfare to the House of Commons on Tuesday afternoon, including a tightening of the eligibility criteria for PIP.
PIP is not linked to work and helps with extra living costs for people with disabilities. It comes in two parts: a daily living part, for people who struggle with everyday tasks; and a mobility part, for people who have difficulty getting around.
Kendall confirmed applicants for PIP will now need to score a minimum of four points in at least one activity to qualify for the daily living element.
She said the changes were necessary so the benefits system is focused on "support for those in greatest need".
“Every day there are more than 1000 new PIP awards – that’s the equivalent of adding a population the size of Leicester every single year," said Kendall.
"That is not sustainable long-term, above all for the people who depend on this support.”
The change will not affect the mobility element of the payment.
Kendall announced PIP will not be frozen following a backlash from Labour MPs, though there had been suggestions that the idea was always pitched as a negotiating tactic to later concede.
The Fraser of Allander Institute has previously noted that a £1bn reduction in PIP spending through reduced caseload would worsen the Scottish Budget by around £115 million.
Elsewhere, Kendall said the “complex” and “time-consuming” work capability assessment for Universal Credit is also set to be scrapped in 2028.
Kendall added that the UK Government "will legislate to rebalance the payments in Universal Credit from April next year, holding the value of the health top-up fixed in cash terms for existing claimants and reducing it for new claimants".
Kendall said the Government will consult on whether the health top-up to Universal Credit should be delayed for those aged under 22, with the savings spent on work support and training opportunities.
Labour have also announced a "right to try" initiative, which Kendall said will mean trying to get a job will never put a benefit at risk.
Kendall said the current system is based on a binary assessment of "can or can't work", which does not take into account fluctuating symptoms.
The UK Government will additionally consult on merging jobseeker’s allowance and employment support allowance, which will allow people who have paid into the system to get higher benefit payments for a period of time.
The proposal would merge the two benefits into a time-limited unemployment insurance which is paid at a higher rate.
Claimants would not have to prove they are unable to work, in order to receive it.
On support for those looking for work, the minister announced £1bn a year for employment support.
Crucially, the Labour Government has decided to delay the publication of impact assessments of welfare cuts and details of the new rates.
Kendall said they won't be published until Spring Statement meaning we won't know how many people will be affected and how much worse off they will be until then.
There is also currently no breakdown of where the £5bn worth of savings is going to come from.
Kendall said the reforms aim to fix a "broken benefits system".
SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn MP warned the cuts "will harm the most vulnerable, push disabled people into poverty" and mark "the start of a new era of austerity cuts under the Labour Party".
However, Scottish Labour have insisted the reforms do not amount to austerity.
Leader Anas Sarwar said that net spending would go up, which he said was the "very opposite of austerity".
The MSP insisted that Keir Starmer’s Government had to act to deal with the “broken approach” to social security payments left by the Tories.
