A group of MPs have warned disability minister Sir Stephen Timms that his review into the Personal Independence Payment (Pip) risks repeating the mistakes of Labour’s ill-fated attempt to cut disability benefits last year.
The Work and Pensions Committee says it is “concerned” about how Sir Stephen’s review is being meaningfully co-produced with disabled people following a pledge to do so.
This was a key critique made last year when over 100 Labour MPs decided not to back the government’s attempt to cut welfare spending.
While committee chair Debbie Abrahams welcomed the “clear efforts” made by the review to hear from disabled people, she said it has not ensured that they have “shared power in decision-making”.
“You know that the committee has seen co-creation/co-design and co-production as central to the efforts the department has been making to change the culture within it,” she added.
Ms Abrahams also urged for more clarity on plans to introduce non-cash awards and services alongside lump payments.
An update from the Timms review earlier this month said the benefit will continue to “contribute fairly” to extra costs that arise from disability and health conditions.
This could mean claimants receive less money in exchange for equipment like walking aids, or transport costs.
But it is unclear from the wording what proportion of costs will be covered by awards, the committee says, and how this will interact with public services.
“For example, the Committee would find it unacceptable for social care charges to be deducted from Pip awards,” Ms Abrahams writes.
Sir Stephen has been asked to respond to the committee by mid-October.
The number of people claiming Pip hit a record high of 4.1 million in July, official figures show, as it continues to be Britain’s most-claimed health benefit.
Sir Stephen’s review into the payment is expected to report in the autumn. Interim findings from the work earlier this year found it is “not fit for purpose”, indicating plans to make major changes to the benefit.
The review was announced last year after ministers backed down on proposals to tweak the Pip assessment criteria to make it effectively harder to claim.
Around £5bn would have been slashed from welfare spending through the plans, with over 100 Labour MPs threatening to rebel against Sir Keir Starmer and his government on the measures.
New prime minister Andy Burnham has committed to reducing Britain’s welfare bill, with spending on health benefits estimated to be £77.1 billion in 2025/26, up from £36 billion in 2019/20.
However, the prime minister’s spokesperson added last week that this “doesn't mean crude cuts that simply push people into crisis and create bigger costs elsewhere”.
A Department for Work and Pensions spokesperson told The Independent: “This is the first time the UK government has committed to co-production on this scale, putting disabled people at the heart of policymaking with an extensive engagement programme including a call for evidence that received over 38,000 responses.
“The review is led by a steering group of 15 people, a significant majority of whom have lived experience of disability, who are responsible for setting the direction of the work, overseeing the evidence gathering and engagement, and developing recommendations.
“The review is now delivering shaping recommendations workshops in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, testing and refining recommendations to deliver a system that supports disabled people and those with long-term conditions to live independent lives.”
