Welfare cuts proposed by the Government are facing criticism from charities and health experts, who warn the measures could cost lives.
Labour leader Keir Starmer has called the current welfare system "morally indefensible", pledging that Labour's reforms will focus on helping those capable of working to find employment.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves is expected to announce further welfare cuts in her spring statement on Wednesday.
Initially, the government anticipated the proposed changes would cut £5 billion from the welfare bill. However, the Office for Budget Responsibility now estimates the adjustments to disability and incapacity benefits will only save £3.4 billion in 2029/30.
According to The Times, the Government is seeking additional savings of £500 million. This will reportedly involve freezing universal credit incapacity benefits for new claimants until 2030, instead of increasing them with inflation. A small reduction in the basic rate is also expected in 2029.
The original plans, announced last week, drew immediate criticism from charities and even some Labour MPs.
Party veteran Diane Abbott said there was “nothing moral” about the plan and accused the Treasury of wishing to “balance the country’s books on the back of the most vulnerable and poor people in this society”.
A tightening of eligibility for the main disability benefit personal independence payment (PIP) and cuts to the health element of universal credit (UC) have prompted stark warnings and calls for a rethink.
Changes to PIP are expected to account for the largest proportion of savings, with the Resolution Foundation think tank estimating this could see between 800,000 and 1.2 million people in England and Wales losing support of between £4,200 and £6,300 per year by the end of the decade.
An official impact assessment is expected to be published on Wednesday into the previously announced changes.
Charities have reported a surge in calls and visits to their advice pages following last week’s announcement, which came after lengthy speculation about what might be in store.
Mental health charity Mind said its helpline advisers had reported that some people had indicated their level of worry was such that they felt they had “no choice but to end their own life”.
.jpeg?trim=0%2C0%2C0%2C0)
The charity’s welfare advice line saw calls rise from 90 the previous week to 182 last week, while other information and support lines received more than 2,540 calls, which was a 10 per cent rise on the previous week.
Disability charity Scope said calls to its helpline on the day of the announcement had more than doubled to 344 from 118 the week earlier, while its online community saw 20,000 interactions on the day compared to 15,000 seven days before.
Citizens Advice saw views of its PIP advice pages rise to almost 80,000 views last week, which was a 44 per cent rise from the week before.
Scope said people feel “abandoned by the Government”.
Meanwhile, a group of public health experts said further cuts to social security could lead to deaths.
Writing in the British Medical Journal, they said the reforms, coming after years of austerity, would have a detrimental effect on already vulnerable people.
One of the group, Professor Gerry McCartney, a specialist in wellbeing economy at the University of Glasgow, said: “There is now substantial evidence that cuts to social security since 2010 have fundamentally harmed the health of the UK population.
“Implementing yet more cuts will therefore result in more premature deaths. It is vital that the UK Government understands this evidence and takes a different policy approach.”
The Government has pledged to invest an additional £1 billion-a-year by 2029/2030 to help support people into work including through one-to-one help and said it will protect disabled people who will never be able to work by scrapping the need for them to have benefits reassessments.
Spring statement live: Reeves to cut benefits to plug £1.6bn budget black hole
John Healey challenged over £2.2bn defence boost as benefits to be slashed further
Some e-bikes to be banned on London Underground after station fires
Opposition leaders to declare no confidence in Dail speaker
BBC Scotland’s head of news to step down after almost a decade in role
Non-folding e-bikes to be banned on London Tube and rail services
