BANK MILLIONS ON THE BACK OF HUMAN MISERY

DWP reward private firms for failure – to the tune of £700m

PRIVATE companies are making £19million a month deciding which disabled people are eligible for benefits – with many of their mistaken adjudications overturned on appeal.

Labour have accused the Department for Work and Pensions of rewarding the failure of Atos and Capita, who look set to be paid more than £700million over five years.

The figure compares with an original estimate of £512million for the contracts to carry out assessments for personal independence payments.

DWP figures show more than 160,000 people who were initially denied PIP have had the decision overturned since the benefit launched in 2013 – while Atos and Capita have been dogged by accusations of insensitivity.

Atos bought their way out of the Government’s controversial ESA fitness-for-work testing scheme in 2015 after years of scandals involving disabled claimants being put through humiliating tests and assessed for inappropriate work.

But the outsourcing company have continued with assessments for PIP and, along with Centrica, are set to bank millions of pounds more than was budgeted for.

Analysis by the Press Association shows Atos and Capita have already been paid £578million in relation to PIP since it launched in 2013.

This includes £257million in 2016, according to DWP monthly spending data. The three original call-off contracts for this work totalled just £512million, supposed to cover a five-year period up to December.

But with the DWP having paid Atos and Capita an average of £19million a month over the past two years, the companies are set to be paid in excess of £700million by the time the contracts end.

Labour’s Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Debbie Abrahams MP said: “It is beyond belief that this Tory Government are rewarding failure.

“The PIP process is in disarray and these private companies are receiving huge payouts in a time of extreme austerity.

“It is clear that these costs are spiralling out of control.

“The Government need to get an urgent grip on these extortionate payments to private companies, especially at a time when they are getting more and more assessments overturned in the courts.”

SNP disability spokesman Corri Wilson MP said: “This is completely unacceptable and people will be totally shocked that these private companies are piling up cash like this.

“It is hard to believe that a Government so intent on austerity have allowed this to get so out of control – and at the same time create so much misery for so many people.”

The DWP payouts to the private administrators totalled £198million in 2015, £91million in 2014 and £7million in 2013, the year PIP launched.

Figures released for January and February 2017 show that the companies have been paid a further £25million already this year.

A DWP spokeswoman said: “We routinely review our work to make sure we focus our resources on the most viable options and deliver the most effective support for the most vulnerable in society, while also ensuring the best value for the taxpayer.”

A Capita spokesman said: “We were selected through a rigorous procurement process by the DWP to undertake PIP assessments in line with DWP’s specification.

“We provide these reports to the DWP who make a decision on whether to award a benefit, and if applicable the level of such an award.

“We are paid according to the number of quality controlled assessments we complete for the DWP.”

It is clear that these costs are spiralling out of control