Thread by @PollardTom

This, from a DWP press release yesterday (), is outrageous

In two short paragraphs it peddles multiple falsehoods about the current system that will be used to justify upcoming cuts & changes

Here's what MPs & journalists should be challenging... 🧵 gov.uk/government/new…

First of all, people are not "placed in binary categories of either “fit for work” or “not fit for work”" - there is a middle category where people are expected to engage with employment support but not to apply for work - there's a reason DWP may want to gloss over this... /2

Despite people in this middle group receiving less money (just the basic rate of UC since 2017), being less unwell/disabled & having more 'conditionality' applied, their rate of returning to work hasn't been much higher than for those with higher benefits & no conditionality /3

Why is that inconvenient for the government? Because they are trying to claim that reducing the rate of financial support people receive & applying more 'expectations' will help to move more ill & disabled people into work, when there is very little evidence to support this /4

Secondly, the Work Capability Assessment does not "drive people who want to work to a life on benefits". People go through the WCA because they feel unable to work at this time due to the impact of disabilities & health conditions. Many will hope to return to work in future /5

There are very real issues about people fearing returning to work because of potential loss (& difficulty of regaining) benefits & people wanting protection from Jobcentre conditionality in the first place. There are problems with the WCA, but it is far from the central issue /6

Finally, being placed in the LCWRA group does not mean people are "locked out" of employment support or work. All it means is people can't be mandated to undertake support or apply for jobs under threat of sanctions. There is nothing to stop DWP offering voluntary support /7

However, DWP has historically done very little to proactively offer such support & efforts by others to do so have been hampered by people's (understandable) fears of being reassessed or losing their benefits if they 'put their head above the parapet' & engage with support /8

We just started to see a positive shift in thinking in last year's White Paper on employment support - recognising that a focus on compliance actually undermines DWP's ability to foster genuine engagement, which is the critical ingredient to help people back towards work /9

Under pressure from Treasury to achieve short-term cuts, DWP seems to be reverting to a tired, discredited narrative that conflates compliance with engagement and conditionality with support. All before a more positive approach has even been properly attempted /10

I believe many more ill & disabled people could be supported back into work & that reform of the benefits system has a part to play (among many other factors)

But the cuts being floated will not help to achieve this & neither will wildly misleading DWP press releases /END