It's now less than 24 hours until MPs are expected to vote on disability benefit cuts.
We still have very little information and what we do know is concerning.
A thread on some of the things we do and don't know, and why MPs cannot take this leap into the dark 🧵1/12
We still have very little information and what we do know is concerning.
A thread on some of the things we do and don't know, and why MPs cannot take this leap into the dark 🧵1/12
For new PIP claimants, they will need to score 4 or above in a Daily Living Activity category. Needing help to cut food, wash below the waist or dress yourself scores below a 4. These people could be denied PIP. 2/12
The government points to the PIP review which could change the activities that are assessed and the amount they score.
It claims this will be co-produced with disabled people, but disabled people say this would not be meaningful when the plan is to make £3 billion in cuts. 3/12
It claims this will be co-produced with disabled people, but disabled people say this would not be meaningful when the plan is to make £3 billion in cuts. 3/12
With the PIP review not completing until autumn 2026, there is also a risk that some people fall through a gap where the new 4 point rule has come into effect before the changes from the review. 4/12
Therefore, MPs are being asked to take a leap into the dark, voting for this now, with no guarantee at all that people who need support will receive it.
According to the government's current estimates, an additional 150,000 people will be in poverty. 5/12
According to the government's current estimates, an additional 150,000 people will be in poverty. 5/12
Others argue it will be more like 250,000. These cuts will cost lives.
The only way to ensure that we are not pushing more disabled people into poverty and risking even more deaths in the benefits system, is to stop this Bill. 6/12
The only way to ensure that we are not pushing more disabled people into poverty and risking even more deaths in the benefits system, is to stop this Bill. 6/12
It's also not clear that all existing claimants will be unaffected. If you have a fluctuating condition and upon reassessment you no longer qualify for PIP, if you need to put a new claim in in the future, it will be harder still for you to receive it. 7/12
The same could apply to the Universal Credit health element. If you got a job (as the government wants you to do) but then a few years later your health worsened and you needed UC again, you stand to receive less money than you did before. 8/12
In any case, we are creating a two-tier system where people with the same needs could receive vastly different sums. The government hasn't given an answer for why this is fair, apart from the fact that this has happened before (not a good enough reason!) 9/12
The Bill is also being rushed through. There has been no formal consultation with disabled people, no OBR analysis of the employment impact, no assessment of the impact on health and care needs.
All the remaining Commons stages are being crammed into a single day. 10/12
All the remaining Commons stages are being crammed into a single day. 10/12
In short, we don't know what we are about to vote on, and the government is failing to provide the necessary evidence or guarantees.
This is not how we should be making laws. The government should pull this Bill. If it doesn't, I'll be voting against it. 11/12
This is not how we should be making laws. The government should pull this Bill. If it doesn't, I'll be voting against it. 11/12
It’s not too late to make your voice heard, if you haven’t already. You can still email your MP. Find them here: 12/12members.parliament.uk/FindYourMP
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
