A proposed shake-up of the benefits system could cause strain on the mental health of claimants and lead to a "broken" welfare system, according to a charity. A spokesperson said they were “appalled” at the proposed new approach to sanctions, outlined in a White Paper.
The comments follow the recent publication by the UK Government of the Health and Disability White Paper. The paper lays out proposed reforms to the benefits system. As part of its shake-up of the welfare system, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) announced plans to scrap the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) with the aim of encouraging people who need to claim benefits back into work. WCAs currently provide decisions on whether a person is fit for work for the purpose of their Employment Support Allowance (ESA) or Universal Credit (UC) allowance.
It’s important to keep in mind that these planned changes are proposals and will be debated in Parliament before coming into force in 2026/27.
Disability campaigners, including mental health charity Mind, have long-called for reform to, or the scrapping of, the WCA, on the basis that the assessment process is ‘harmful, discriminatory and ineffective’, reports Daily Record. Which adds that Mind warns under the new proposals, instead of undergoing a WCA, the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) assessment would be used to decide whether a person will receive the new UC health element.
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Mind’s research, Reassessing Assessments, highlighted that PIP assessments share many of the same issues as WCAs, and are often more problematic. Figures show that 69 per cent of people with mental health issues who experienced PIP assessments were left feeling their mental health had declined, compared to 62 per cent for the WCA. A further 46 per cent of people felt their PIP assessor did not understand mental health problems, compared to 36 per cent assessed under a WCA.
Concerned was also expressed by the charity about the effect of these changes on people who are unable to work but would not currently be eligible for PIP. PIP is for people with long-term health conditions or disabilities, but many people who are currently on higher ESA or UC and too unwell to work would not meet the PIP definition.
While transitional protection will be reassuring for some, Mind said this does not solve the problem that many people could lose out as a result of these changes. It said that these reforms should not ‘further weaken the financial safety net for people with mental health problems’.
The White Paper also details changes to the sanctions system, stating that ‘a new approach will provide more personalised levels of conditionality’. This comes in addition to an announcement during the Spring Budget that a more rigorous sanctions regime would be implemented and that some parts of this process could become automated. Mind warns that the effectiveness of sanctions has no evidence base, and they have been disproportionately used on people with mental health issues, leaving some in destitution.
Vicki Nash, Head of Policy, Campaigns and Public Affairs at Mind, said: “Scrapping the problematic Work Capability Assessment is a welcome step towards rectifying the DWP’s broken assessments system, but the UK Government’s approach lacks the rounded, fully formed thinking that’s going to be needed to solve the many issues plaguing the benefits system.
“We know from our Reassessing Assessments report that the WCA is deeply problematic. It frequently causes people’s mental health to decline, and all too often leaves people claiming benefits feeling that their mental health problems were not understood by the assessor. It is at least positive the UK Government has finally recognised the benefits system needs to change in this regard.”
However, she added: “The news that the UK Government will be once again changing the benefits system will still be deeply worrying for many people who need to claim benefits. The UK Government needs to understand that there is little, if any, trust left among people with experience of our benefits system that efforts to change it will lead to better outcomes for them. The changes detailed in the White Paper will do nothing to rebuild that trust.”
Ms Nash said that Mind is “appalled” at the proposed new approach to sanctions, outlined in the White Paper and warned that they “don’t work and are deeply harmful”.
She said: “We are appalled that the paper makes reference to a new approach to the sanctioning of benefit claimants, alongside suggestions in the budget that the UK Government will move towards a more rigorous sanctions regime, with sanctioning potentially through automated systems.
“Sanctions don’t work and are deeply harmful. They can push people into extreme poverty and hardship, and can even be fatal. The removal of any influence of human empathy left in the system is unthinkable. Instead, the UK government should be ending sanctions for disabled people.”
Ms Nash also said it was “very concerning that the White Paper suggests benefit awards will be based on the assessments currently used for PIP, once the WCA is phased out”. Adding: “We know from our research that PIP assessments are far short of where they need to be, and in many ways are worse than the WCA. Replacing one broken system of assessments with another system that is performing even more poorly would lead to worse results for people with mental health problems.”
She also warned that it is “particularly worrying that people who do not qualify for PIP, but do qualify for higher awards under the current WCA, are set to lose out”. Ms Nash said: “If the UK Government is to achieve a benefits system that allows people to recover and potentially return to work when it is best for them, we need fresh ideas alongside sorely needed investment in mental health services and support.
“The DWP must work to rebuild trust with disabled people and establish a commission of those with lived experience of disability benefits to help them redesign the system. We need a benefits system that truly supports people, rather than sanctioning them, and that disabled people can trust.”
You can read ‘Transforming Support: The Health and Disability White Paper’ on GOV.UK here.
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