My MP Response from Kim Leadbeater MP

Here is the full email response from Kim Leadbeater, who looks to be for the welfare reform.

Thank you for your email regarding welfare reforms.

I know recent announcements and coverage in the media have caused concern for some people and I am very sorry about that. I hope the information below is helpful and provides some reassurance.

In short I think it is important to note a few key points which I will go over in more detail in the main body of this Email. Firstly PIP is not being scrapped. Secondly Universal Credit is going to be uprated above inflation for the first time ever; this will mean a £775 cash increase per year by 29/30 and the Government have proposed adding a new premium top up to UC for those who will never be able to work as well as no longer reassessing those people. Thirdly no changes will come into effect until November 2026 and then only when a new assessment process is done.

When Labour came to power, they inherited a broken social security system which was denying far too many people the dignity of work and rising in cost at an unsustainable rate. We need a fairer system which provides vital support for those who need it most, ensuring the most vulnerable in our society live with dignity and independence, while making sure that everyone who is able to work is supported to do so.

The pledge this Government has made is to put social security spending on a more stable footing, making the system fit for purpose - today and for future generations. It is investing an additional £1 billion a year for work, health and skills support through the “Pathways to Work” offer.

I understand your concerns around the proposed changes to Personal Independence Payments and Universal Credit. However, the extraordinary increase in the number of welfare claimants since the Covid pandemic means the government has no choice but to take action. It is also worth noting the OBR estimates that only 8% of people who were predicted to have been receiving PIP by 2029-30 will no longer receive it at all.

Since the pandemic, the number of working-age people receiving PIP has more than doubled from 15,300 to 35,100 a month. The number of young people (16-24) receiving PIP has also skyrocketed from 2,967 to 7,857 a month. Over the next five years, if no action is taken, the number of working age people claiming PIP is expected to increase from 2 million in 2021 to 4.3 million, costing £34.1 billion annually.

These figures are clearly unsustainable. Something has gone seriously wrong over recent years and I am particularly concerned about the figures showing that one in eight young people are currently not in work, education or training. That’s not good for them, for the economy or for the taxpayer.

So there is an urgent need to reform a system that simply is not working.

Those with the most severe and lifelong conditions, who will never be able to work, will be eligible for a new Universal Credit premium and will no longer face future reassessments. The Government is also increasing Universal Credit above inflation for the first time ever which will mean a £775 cash increase per year by 29/30 for existing and new claimants.

I also welcome the “Right to Try” work guarantee that will mean starting work will have no short-term impact on a person’s benefits. And the scrapping of the Work Capability Assessment which ignored the reality that health conditions fluctuate and labelled people as simply ‘can’ or ‘can’t’ being able to work is a very positive step.

We should be encouraging people who are not working to find it if they are able to, and the extra £1 billion investment into the “Pathways to Work” programme will help to do this. This is one of the largest ever investments in support to increase opportunities to work. To obtain greater detail on the Government’s plans in this regard I will be writing to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Liz Kendall.

The system should be supporting people who want to find work while ensuring that people who are most in need will retain their PIP.

I want to see a social security system that gets decisions right the first time and focuses on what people can do, not just what they cannot.

It is important to note that no changes to PIP will take place until November 2026.

There is also a 12 week consultation which you can participate in:

Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working Green Paper - GOV.UK

In my ‘Healthy Britain’ report, published in March 2023, I called for healthier, more inclusive workplaces, something I’m pleased to say the government is now driving forwards. People with disabilities and other challenges deserve the same opportunities as anybody else and workplaces that meet their needs. The Government will support employers to recruit and retain disabled people and people with long term health conditions through the ‘Keep Britain Working’ Review. Alongside long term reform of ‘Access to Work’, which provides personalised support for disabled people, and those with long term health conditions, to enter and progress in work.

Only by making sure welfare payments are sustainable in the long term and ensuring that those most in need get the help they need, can we do what is right for those who rely on the benefits system, for taxpayers and for the good of the economy on which we all depend.

Thank you again for getting in touch.

With very best wishes,

Kim

Kim Leadbeater MP

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Comments

Martinp

so losing £900 a month is nothing to worry about then.

Adam____F

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1023389#Comment_1023389

It's an extremely serious problem, the fact she responded with this is disgusting.

Catherine21

I'd call her out where's these jobs??? Where's I.3 million people going to go and I'd make it very clear that she wouldn't be getting my vote !!! Keep saying 2026 like it's light years away gosh I'd be angry at that

Adam____F

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1023449#Comment_1023449

It would all fall on deaf hears with her.

MW123

@Adam____F

Thanks for sharing your reply. Kim Leadbeater acknowledges people are worried. Wow, groundbreaking! But after recognising the worry, she does nothing to address it, just a list of policy changes (which, let’s be honest, you already know because that’s why you wrote to her in the first place).

She blames the media, but the government could ease the worry by simply saying who will be deemed "most vulnerable" and "too sick to work" under the new rules. She must know the answers to these questions, especially since in her ‘Healthy Britain’ report published in March 2023, she was responsible for outlining the support needed for disabled people and those with long-term health conditions.

She clearly knows what counts as a long-term health condition, she wrote the report. So she should be able to tell you where your illness fits: most vulnerable, too sick to work, or able to work under the new rules.

Perhaps she can also offer some advice on what disabled people should do when employers are laying off staff due to Labour’s tax on employers. What happens when you’re stuck in poor health with no chance of finding work? These aren’t difficult questions to answer, especially with all the research she’s done on the subject.

Trevor_PIP

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1023446#Comment_1023446

It is a serious problem and it is getting to unsustainable levels. I accept there is a big issue. I would not worry and neither should you. The fact is that working age people claiming ill health benefits has increased by 2/3 since lockdown to a cost that is more than the Policing budget for a year.... It also tells me that there are some that don't want a job anymore after spending time off due to lockdown... It is disgusting and needs sorting out. I know working people do want something done about it... This reform is not directed at disabled people, it's directed at the lazy that don't want a job after spending time off due to lockdown. I am retired but I recently helped friends out in an office for a year and left with their agreement. It took one year to get a replacement and he was not to good and left within weeks. They still do not have a replacement... Some people don't want a job these days, just go through the process to stay on UC… I know of young guys on LCWRA and train regular in gyms. Not to mention, most that got benefits during lockdown got them on a phone call, not the procedure we all went through... I even had Nurses at my door... See what I am saying! PIP has been running for years and 2m on PIP in 2021 and now 3.7m and that increase in what 4 years - very strange. It is this element that is causing all the worry for genuine disabled people... You see them with their "PIP sticks" and "Dole poles" and know it is put on. One guy walked in a store using his "PIP stick" then walked out with a heavy bag of shopping with the said "PIP stick" under his arm... Yes, something does need to be done, some think the Government should be looking at a £30 billion saving, going back to pre lockdown levels. Sorry for the rant but thst is what I and millions think!

Dav1D

Have I got this right?

The people who have been the WCA, and found to be to sick to work, and placed into the LCWRA support group, (for ESA and/or UC) are now being told that unless they meet the proposed new PIP assessment, and score 4 points in just one PIP daily living descriptor, (and two points in another two PIP descriptors) then they do not qualify for any UC or ESA or PIP?!?

Its so ludicrous its barely believable.

Have they announced what happens to the people who are in LCWRA, under Reg 35, having been deemed to unable to work due to Risk?

(Drip feeding information to people with serious illness, creating anxiety and stress is despicable and should be considered a deliberate attack)

How many people claiming ESA, UC, are in the support group, but do not/ will not score 4 points in just one PIP daily living descriptor?

It must be a lot of people, and therefore how can these bottom feeding low life politicians, keep stating that 'those with the most lifelong and severe conditions who will never be able to work' will be supported?

When they are proposing to end all their benefits?!?!

Can anyone explain this seemingly complete contradiction?

(Are the MPs being lied to, or are they lying to us?!)

MW123

@Trevor_PIP

Firstly welcome to the Scope community.

The frustration surrounding the misuse of the system is understandable, but the real issue is the lack of clarity in the new rules for those of us with legitimate health conditions. I have battled chronic blood cancer, spinal stenosis, and now heart failure, brought on by fluid overload after more than 300 blood transfusions in the past two years.

These serious health challenges have made it impossible for me to continue working full-time. As a result, I have been forced to cut my working hours dramatically, from full-time down to just 30 hours a week. This reduction in hours is not by choice, but out of necessity, as my health simply no longer allows me to manage the physical demands of a full-time position.

I rely on PIP, yet under these new regulations, I stand to lose my entitlement simply because I may not fit neatly into the newly defined categories. Let me be clear: I am not lazy. I want to work. I fight to work. But my health prevents me from holding a full-time position. I now work thirty hours a week, which is the absolute maximum I can manage, yet even that comes at a cost to my health.

This issue extends beyond me. Many others with severe health conditions are struggling, some unable to work at all. I recognise that I am luckier than most and can still manage to work, but that does not mean I am unaffected by these PIP changes. I push through my health challenges every day to remain employed, but these proposed cuts to PIP threaten not only my stability but the ability of countless individuals to maintain or even seek employment. Instead of supporting those of us who are trying and those to sick to work, these changes risk making survival even harder.

It’s definitely a complex issue, but I think the real challenge lies in crafting reforms that target the misuse of the system without inadvertently penalising people who are not abusing the system, but who genuinely rely on it for support due to their health.

Trevor_PIP

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1023533#Comment_1023533

Thank you for the welcome. I will try and help where I can.

I fully agree there is lack of clarity and the small print is required. I'm sorry you are going through all your health issues, but well done on continuing to work. My post was not directed at people like you, I feel all these issues that are causing genuine disabled people a lot of worry is caused by dishonest people. The increases in benefit claims since lockdown tell a story and are unprecedented in benefit history. It isn't you and disabled people that are lazy! I genuinely think people like yourself have nothing to worry about. DWP should be assessing those that claimed benefits on a phone call over lockdown, that is what they should be doing.

I totally agree with your last paragraph and hope that will be the case and I am sure it will be. There will be uproar if not. I am sure the vast majority of people want the disabled looked after....

Adam____F

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1023511#Comment_1023511

Do you think I should email kim back and ask her out right what conditions / disabilities would get PIP and what the severity of a disability would deem not fit for work.

Using my own disability and current circumstances as an example?

Catherine21

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1023520#Comment_1023520

Ofcourse it's directed at disabled people and if you know people defrauding system report them because everyone on benefits classed the same don't be to confident

Trevor_PIP

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1023615#Comment_1023615

I don't think it is directed at genuine disabled people. The increases in benefit claims since lockdown is unprecedented and unsustainable. The law of averages says there is something amiss, there is and it needs sorting out. Working people are wanting something done about it now, as a good chunk of their wages is gone in tax, it is not fair! There is that element of able bodied that do not want to work since lockdown. I have given examples in my posts. Here we go again.. One young man in my town was a storeman and left, he told a taxi driver I'm not in a rush to find another job because UC pays for my flat and I still have enough money to get by, the taxi driver stopped and asked him to get out. Taxi drivers tell me a lot... Another bragged well before Christmas that she was sorted with presents etc and said, not bad that on benefits, she was another removed from the taxi too. Others get picked up then go and get their benefits from the bank, then to the food banks and get dropped off at a pub..... Then you wonder why there is now this stance from the Government, as the cost of it all is now unsustainable. UK is the only country in the G7 that has not got back to pre COVID economic levels and we all know why.

It continues with the Blue Disabled Badges, one man has a disabled person in a wheelchair in an adapted vehicle and can never get in a disabled slot at his supermarket.. This is regular and he is annoyed, I have read his full story. In the end he went over and questioned people in the disabled slots, one young able bodied man he questioned said "I am disabled I have anxiety." He could park at the other end of the car park with anxiety... Others had minor issues too. Some were overweight and unfit, their own doing... Again all getting out of hand here too! Not to mention all the fake Blue Disabled Badges....

I don't know the full names of the young bodybuilders on LCWRA, but I am sure the DWP are aware as they are stopping under 22's from claiming LCWRA in the new reforms....

Like I have said, the genuine on benefits are not being targeted, I am sure it, you only have to look at the statistics since lockdown.

Catherine21

Define genuine I have invisible illness can mask so you'd think I wasn't genuine when I am ?

Trevor_PIP

I am not going to post anymore on this subject, I am only repeating myself. We are all entitled to our own opinions, you can see mine already. Thanks.

Albus_Scope

It's very easy to judge people when you don't know what goes on behind closed doors @Trevor_PIP When you see people out and about, they are probably having a good day. As I'm sure you're aware, most disabilities aren't set in stone, the issues can come in waves, with good days and bad days. If you saw me getting out of a car, parked in a disabled spot (as I have a blue badge,) I'm sure you'd say I didn't need that spot. But the fact I've even left the house shows I'm having a very good day, but I'll be unable to leave the house again for a few days once home and I'll probably be on painkillers and asleep for a good few hours afterwards.

I have acute social anxiety disorder, lower limb deformities and I'm autistic. Just because you can't see my disabilities, it doesn't mean they're not there. I sometimes walk with a cane too, but if I need to carry something, I can. I'll just pay for it later. 😆

I'm in no doubt there are a few people trying to game the system, but that is a miniscule percentage compared to the number of people still needing help and those who will lose their support with the proposed changes. Judge not…

Timbo_Guitar

And there is the money shot hey? Genuine? Who decides what illness or person is genuinely ill?? It seems ill defined, obtuse and purposefully punitive. Yet when I voted for this Labour Party that promised change and the broadest shoulders should bare the biggest burden, I never suspected the rat-like turnabout of targeting the benefits and welfare of the poorest and disabled, those who generally always pay the price of government mismanagement and economic downturns.

Seem to recall tens of billions of pounds going missing during the last Tory government, £37 billion alone for a track and test app that never worked, and billions more defrauded and unaccounted for. Yet to balance the books Keir and his pals go for the people who didn't cause the problems. That's the underpinning of it all, corruption and mismanagement in high places being balanced by further punching down on the rest of us.

It is unfair and borderline fascism. Tax the wealthy and balance the books that way.

allanawilliams

Here is a link to a petition on stopping PIP and UC changes, we need 100,000 signatures for a debate:

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/721828

Wibbles

"Those with the most severe and lifelong conditions, who will never be able to work, will be eligible for a new Universal Credit premium and will no longer face future reassessments."

No mention of having to be up to date with National Insurance contributions then ?

Wibbles

It is also worth noting the OBR estimates that only 8% of people who were predicted to have been receiving PIP by 2029-30 will no longer receive it at all.

Over the next five years, if no action is taken, the number of working age people claiming PIP is expected to increase from 2 million in 2021 to 4.3 million, costing £34.1 billion annually.

8% of 4.3 million is 344,000 that she predicts will no longer receive PIP AT ALL - AND IS HAPPY WITH THAT NUMBER !!

Santosha12

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1023740#Comment_1023740

Just came to say.. the same.

Tbh, someone who gets their 'facts' from a cabbie I'll take with a pinch of salt (no disrespect to any cabbies out their but @Trevor_PIP you're on the right forum here to listen to people with real, lived experience) to form a balanced, compassionate, opinion. Or not, as the case may be.

I personally find there seems to be a real resentment from some taxpayers out their, maybe they think they'll never be affected by chronic illness or disability and might need help themselves one day.

Maybe they need to channel their resentment to those who enable the system of support to fail so abysmally - i.e. the government and DWP/assessment services who get it so wrong, so often, but worse, fail to treat claimants with the dignity we rightly deserve.

As far as the pandemic is concerned, I am one of goodness how many thousands, affected by Long Covid after catching it three times whilst nursing and now have an additional 26 diagnoses, many of which have been life changing. So I can remember when the public were applauding the NHS and carers. Oh how times and attitudes change. I went to Tribunal to be awarded PIP, after 18 months of applying - every day of which was hugely stressful and traumatic.

So it's very easy to say that those who are genuine are not being targeted - they absolutely are and have been for too long.

So I'll be fighting, along with many others on here, the proposed changes/Green Paper.

I think 'There but for the grace of God go I' is a good maxim, or 'Walk a day in my shoes' perhaps.

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