Concerned for members misunderstanding proposed possible changes.

woodbine

I am becoming more and more concerned for our members who might be worrying about recent govt. proposals and the fact that so many people who haven't taken the time to look carefully at what is actually being proposed and then posting opinion as fact.

The major changes are only going to affect job-seekers claiming UC during the coming year, from 2025 people claiming UC due to sickness will have their claims treated slightly differently than now, changes will only (if they ever do) affect current claims from the end of this decade.

There are no plans at any time to force disabled people to work, and by 2028 there will have been one maybe two general elections, so some of the plans may never see the light of day.

I have said this before but will repeat myself, do not worry until there is something (if ever there is) something to worry about.

I do have a suggestion for Scope and that is the removal of all post where people have misunderstood what is happening, as they serve only to cause unnecessary distress for so many.

Grissom123

From what I understand, the changes to the WCA will only apply to new claimants of ESA and UC from 2025.
Existing claimants will not be affected by the reforms and according to the government's response to the consultation and their press release, those claimants will never again face reassessment except in certain circumstances like reporting a change in their condition or if they are suspected of fraud.
I had a bit of trouble understanding it myself; when there is loads of information at once it takes a long time to go in because I have trouble concentrating. 
But I agree that for now at least there is not much to worry about.

woodbine

Grissom123 said:

From what I understand, the changes to the WCA will only apply to new claimants of ESA and UC from 2025.
Existing claimants will not be affected by the reforms and according to the government's response to the consultation and their press release, those claimants will never again face reassessment except in certain circumstances like reporting a change in their condition or if they are suspected of fraud.
I had a bit of trouble understanding it myself; when there is loads of information at once it takes a long time to go in because I have trouble concentrating. 
But I agree that for now at least there is not much to worry about.

I agree its not been easy to follow the twists and turns of recent days, but you have it right.

meteorpineapple96

Hi I'm Craig  it can be confusing at time s but  i think the best option is not  to post int you have all the information and that you understand it all first i hope it helps  sorry  if it doesn't 

MW123

@woodbine

Woodbine I also share your concerns. Taking into account the upcoming general election and the unclear future of certain plans, your advice to members not to stress unless there's a solid reason is wise. Let's focus on sharing accurate information and supporting one another.

poppy123456

I also agree and share your concerns here. There's far too many threads and when you do comment to try to put their thoughts correct some members still won't listen, even when you provide a link to prove you're correct. "Pulling my hair out" is an under statement.

Biblioklept

woodbine said:

I have said this before but will repeat myself, do not worry until there is something (if ever there is) something to worry about.

I do have a suggestion for Scope and that is the removal of all post where people have misunderstood what is happening, as they serve only to cause unnecessary distress for so many.

I understand what you've said but I don't agree with this, people should be worrying so they can fight for change. Thinking "well it might not happen or will happen in 5 years so doesn't matter right now" isn't helpful and won't help change things. 

Removing people's posts won't be helping either because then you can't address the worry and tbh when you're worried and panicked if someone tried to silence you by removing your post that will lead to disaster!!! If that happened to me while feeling desperate well.... yeah. Let people talk. Admin could just add a thing at the start of each new discussion saying it's not all fact and a link to a place with the KNOWN facts, not people's interpretations of the gov's rubbish announcements. 

I don't think the gov have been overly clear of their intentions, especially given their other proposals still floating about (white paper, consultation on descriptor changes) and saying 'oh well, it's only for new claimants' is burying head in sand too.

"It doesn't affect me so that's okay"  

Hannah_Alumni

The Autumn Statement has been tough for many people to hear. Not just for those who receive benefits. A lot of people will not agree with other policies and proposals they have made. 

I can understand that people are frustrated with the possibility of misinformation, of people making assumptions and taking leaps when there is still so much unknown. But they are scared, worried and already struggling and we don't want to censor anyone's comments because we want to be able to support them.

If people are sharing misinformation outside giving their opinion and you are concerned, please report the posts to moderators. It has been lovely to see members already helping the community to stop the misinformation and continue to support members. 

This is Scope's Official statement to help clear up any misinformation and hopefully help those who are worried: 

There was a lot to unpick in today’s Autumn Statement. Here's everything that you need to know.

We know a lot of disabled people will be worried by some of the announcements in the autumn statement. If you are concerned about any of these issues, you can get in touch with our helpline. Our friendly advisors can provide free, independent and impartial advice and support on issues that matter to disabled people and their families.

We will continue to call on the government to provide better employment support for disabled people and a fairer benefits system. You can keep up with our campaigning, research and what we’ve done so far on our website.

Changes announced to the work capability assessment (WCA)

After lots of speculation in recent weeks, the government has confirmed some changes to the WCA.
It is important to note that these changes will not affect existing claims. It will apply to new claims only and won’t be implemented until 2025.

The government wants to reduce the number of people who are declared unfit for work. This means people who are too unwell to work and have no requirement to look for work to receive benefits.
The government says that it wants the benefits system to better reflect the greater flexibility now available in the world of work. But we know that the world of work hasn’t changed so dramatically that thousands of disabled people can suddenly work from home.

Under the changes, more people are expected to be declared fit for work and required to look for jobs or have their benefits cut. It will do this by changing some of the questions asked in the Work Capability Assessment.

Tougher measures for Universal Credit claimants

As part of its Back to Work Plan the government say they will invest to help tackle long-term unemployment, including supporting and incentivising unemployed Universal Credit claimants to find work.
But they are also proposing tougher measures. This looks like:

• Phase 1: Unemployed claimants get offered more regular support.

• Phase 2: If after 6 months, a claimant hasn't found a job they will be referred to the Restart programme. Restart is a 12-month intensive job search programme providing support to tackle barriers. 

• Phase 3: If, after 12 months on Restart, an individual has not found work, they will have a review with their Work Coach. This is to determine what future conditions might look like. If no suitable job exists locally, a claimant will be made to take on a time-limited mandatory work placement. If they refuse to accept this placement, their claim will be stopped. This will also end their access to additional benefits such as free prescriptions and legal aid.

These changes only apply to those who receive the Universal Credit standard allowance – not to those who also receive the health element of Universal Credit.

No one in the Limited Capability for Work Related Activity (LCWRA) or Limited Capability for Work (LCW) groups will face benefit sanctions and all support offered will be voluntary.

The changes will come into effect in 2024.

Threatening people with more sanctions will not lead to more disabled people getting into and staying in work. It will simply add to the stress and anxiety that disabled people already face.

Cost of living support

The government announced that benefits will increase by 6.7% from April 2024. But the positives of this are overshadowed by the changes announced to the WCA today.

Uprating benefits was the bare minimum the government needed to do to support people with the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.

Life costs more if you are disabled, and the government is now winding down its cost-of-living payments. Crucially, no new targeted support was announced at the autumn statement despite bills remaining historically high. And the energy price cap is predicted to increase again this winter.

Government has also broken its promise to consult on an energy social tariff, which would make bills cheaper for disabled people.

Read the full autumn statement.

If you would like to continue talking about the Autumn Statement. We have another thread where most of our members have joined in to discuss; The Autumn Statement 2023

As a disclaimer, we hope that community members will continue to be civil, safe and supportive and remember the community house rules and community guidelines.

WhatThe

I don't think the gov have been overly clear of their intentions, especially given their other proposals still floating about (white paper, consultation on descriptor changes) and saying 'oh well, it's only for new claimants' is burying head in sand too.

"It doesn't affect me so that's okay"  

That was precisely the attitude taken after the failed National Reassessment Programme of 2011-2014. We took our eye off the ball when the rules were changed in 2016 because Support Group claimants were protected from JCP conditionality. Most people were found 'fit-for-work' or WRAG and we assumed rightly so despite the queue of appeals lining up. DWP did not apply the law correctly or understand its own rules and is still backtracking and re-calculating previous awards. 

We were not given the full facts in 2015/2016 - and when IDS suddenly spotted 'a fundamental flaw in the regulations' which required a new act to fix it, hardly anybody questioned why..