A radical plan that would see Personal Independence Payments (PIP) thrown out has been unveiled by a group of benefit claimants and those who have previously needed financial help.
Instead, all adults would get at least £83.70 a week - with some getting almost three times this.
The changes have been proposed by the Commission on Social Security group and include a new “extra costs” benefit for disabled people.
READ MORE: DWP adds new PIP benefit application option for some claimants
The Commission, whose leaders all say they have “lived experience of the benefits system”, argues that the current benefits system should be replaced by something with something that is no longer “guided by stereotypes and myths about disabled people and people in poverty”.
In terms of a new disability benefit to replace PIP, The Commission proposes a new non-means-tested benefit to cover the extra costs that disabled people face due to illnesses and impairments.
The new disability benefit’s payment rates would be:
- Lower - £83.70 per week
- Middle - £152.15 per week
- Higher - £230.77 per week
The lower rate matches what someone would currently get if they received the PIP standard rate for both daily living and mobility.
The plans were drawn up by The Commission, an organisation that looks at radical reform of the benefit system and is funded by inequality campaign group Trust for London
At the centre of the proposed scheme would be a "Guaranteed Decent Income" of £163.50 a week for all adults, including multiple adults in the same household.
This is similar to a Universal Basic Income, but instead of being paid to all adults rich and poor, would target those whose earnings slip below the £163.50 threshold or who don’t earn at all.
The plans are not costed but Commission secretary Michael Orton claimed they would be a “post-war”-style investment that paid for itself through savings in other areas and a more healthy and prosperous society.
Receive newsletters with the latest news, sport and what's on updates from the Liverpool ECHO by signing up here
