DWP benefit changes could see 650,000 people losing support

MORE than half a million people on disability benefits could lose their support after major changes were announced this week.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has announced sweeping changes, including scrapping the work capability assessment (WCA) to assess eligibility for sickness benefits.

In what had been dubbed a ‘back to work’ budget, Mr Hunt said there were about one million vacancies in the economy and seven million adults not in work.

Referring to two million people inactive due to a disability or illness, the Chancellor said the UK Government would abolish the WCA and said sanctions would be applied “more rigorously” for those who do not undertake specific work search requirements or take up reasonable job offers.

He also announced a new programme called universal support to help disabled people get into work.

But the Resolution Foundation has warned that the UK Government will need to proceed with caution, as hundreds of thousands of people who currently get support could be affected.

The think tank said someone who does not have a long-term illness, mental or physical health condition or disability, would not necessarily qualify for personal independence payments (PIP), meaning that despite being too ill to work they could lose out.

The organisation said: “The scrapping of the WCA amounts to the biggest change in disability benefits in a decade.

“It will rightly be implemented slowly given that there will be significant winners but also losers. Up to 650,000 people currently receiving support after going through the WCA do not receive personal independence payments.

“In future, this group, which includes people recovering from surgery, are likely to see support cut back.”

The UK Government has promised “transitional protection” for existing claimants to “ensure that no one experiences financial loss at the point at which the reform is enacted”, which is likely to be a few years from now.