Good riddance to the work capability assessment, the cruellest social policy of modern times

‘‘Work is a virtue,’ Jeremy Hunt told the Commons last week – language that wouldn’t be out of place in a 19th-century workhouse.’ Photograph: Rory Arnold/No10 Downing Street

As the government announced plans to finally abolish the work capability assessment (WCA) last week, I thought about Stephen Smith’s ribs. The image of Smith’s emaciated body went viral in 2019 after the 64-year-old was declared “fit for work” by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in 2017.

Lung disease and osteoarthritis meant Smith weighed six stone at the time and he could barely walk. Regardless, he had his out-of-work sickness benefits stopped. Smith had to get a pass to leave hospital to attend a tribunal to win his case. He died just a few months later. In the end, Smith’s backdated benefits payments paid for his funeral.