UK benefits system could collapse if payments are not cut, Liz Kendall says
Britain's benefits system faces collapse without cuts to disability payments, Liz Kendall has said, as the government published plans that put it on a collision course with dozens of angry Labour MPs.
Kendall published her welfare reform bill on Wednesday, confirming it would lead to benefit cuts for 950,000 people by 2030. She said the country's £326bn social security net might cease to exist if costs continued to escalate.
The bill includes several concessions designed to win over fractious Labour MPs as ministers look to ward off the biggest rebellion of Keir Starmer's premiership. But the efforts were met with hostility by many in the party, who said they still intended to vote against the bill next month.
Kendall said: 'Our social security system is at a crossroads. Unless we reform it, more people will be denied opportunities, and it may not be there for those who need it. This legislation represents a new social contract and marks the moment we take the road of compassion, opportunity and dignity.
'This will give people peace of mind, while also fixing our broken social security system so it supports those who can work to do so while protecting those who cannot – putting welfare spending on a more sustainable path to unlock growth.'
The bill will cut personal independence payments (Pips) for more than 800,000 people with disabilities, as well as carers' support for 150,000 people who care for them. Claimants only able to wash half of their body or who are unable to cook a meal for themselves will no longer be able to claim Pips unless they have another limiting condition.
The cuts are at the heart of an overall package of nearly £5bn in welfare savings which ministers argue are necessary to protect the financial sustainability of the benefits system.
Kendall has tried to dispel widespread anger in the Labour party over the plans by introducing new concessions. Under the terms of the bill, people losing their disability benefits will get additional financial support for 13 weeks, while those with severe conditions such as heart disease or spinal injuries will not have to face reassessments.
The work and pensions secretary has set out a separate £1bn plan to help unemployed people get back to work, but this is not related to Pips, which are unconnected to employment status.
Whips are also issuing threats, and the deputy prime minister, Angela Rayner, refused on Wednesday to rule out the possibility of suspending any Labour rebels when the bill is put to a vote next month.
The mixture of concessions and threats did not appear to have won over wavering Labour MPs, however, and many went public with their criticism after the bill was published.
Rachael Maskell, the MP for York Central, said: 'Having read the bill, it is clear that disabled people will lose significant support.
Sign up to First Edition
Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters
after newsletter promotion
'The explanatory notes set out that 800,000 will not receive the daily living component of Pip by 2029/2030 and 150,000 will also lose their carers allowance. Poverty will be the legacy of this bill.'
Andy McDonald, the MP for Middlesbrough and Thornaby East, said the bill was 'a huge attack on the incomes of disabled people'.
'MPs are being expected to vote these through whilst the green paper consultation continues, before the Pip assessment review is conducted, and without any evidence the separate employment support package – which is not in this bill – will work.
'This bill will be a yes or no on impoverishing disabled people. It's a no from me.'
Those feelings were echoed by disability campaign groups and charities.
James Taylor, the director of strategy at the disability equality charity Scope said: 'This bill will be catastrophic for disabled people. Cutting benefits will plunge hundreds of thousands into poverty. Over 800,000 will lose at least some financial support from Pip.
'It will have a devastating effect on disabled people's health, ability to live independently or work.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
34 minutes ago
- Reuters
Separatist Moldovan region facing crisis without Russian gas, minister says
CHISINAU, June 18 (Reuters) - Moldova's pro-Russian separatist Transdniestria region faces a dire economic crisis triggered by this year's halting of gas supplies from Russia and a collapse in industrial and farm production, a senior minister in the enclave said on Wednesday. Moldova's pro-European President Maia Sandu has warned that Russia could use instability in Transdniestria to sow chaos and influence a September election to secure a parliament and government more favourable to Moscow. Sandu is seeking European Union membership by 2030. "Forecasts for Transdniestria's economy are not encouraging, based on uncertainty over gas supplies, a lack of a contract on power exports from the thermal plant and the fact that major industrial plants are idle," Economic Development Minister Sergei Obolonik told a government session on Wednesday. "There remains a risk that Moldova could introduce new sanctions and restrictive regulations," he said, according to local media. Transdniestria broke from Soviet Moldova in 1990. Other than a brief 1992 conflict, it has lived alongside the rest of the now-independent state with little upheaval for more than 30 years thanks largely to assistance provided by Moscow. But Russia halted supplies of virtually free gas in January after Ukraine shut a transit pipeline. Separatist authorities secured alternative gas through a Hungarian supplier with Russian funding, but that supply has proved insufficient to keep the economy afloat. Obolonik forecast a 12% drop in gross domestic product in the second half of the year from a year ago, a 30% plunge in industrial output, a 6% slide in agricultural production, a 20% slide in foreign trade and inflation of 16%. Improvement next year, he said, depended on finding reliable gas sources and on Moldova introducing no punitive measures. "We can expect no real growth in the economy," Obolonik said. "The best scenario is for indicators to remain at this year's levels."
BBC News
39 minutes ago
- BBC News
Solar on roofs not farms, says Reform UK in North Northamptonshire
The leader of a Reform UK-controlled council said solar panels should be installed on warehouses rather than Griffiths, who leads North Northamptonshire Council, said putting the panels on good-quality fields was "ridiculous".He has been setting out his priorities for the authority which now has 40 Reform UK councillors after they ousted the Conservatives in May's also thinks climate change targets are "holding our country back". Griffiths is no stranger to the role of leader, having been at the helm of Conservative-controlled Wellingborough Borough Council before it was abolished in jumped ship from the Tories to Reform UK, he now commands a group with a majority of 12 to the BBC about his priorities, he said an improvement programme waas under way in the council's planning said: "I'm determined that we are going to make some progress in that area. It isn't about nimbyism - it's about wanting the very best for our area." One planning issue that he said he was "keen to address" was solar said: "Isn't it interesting that all of these big high-density warehouse developments are coming forward with no solar panels on the roofs?"It's ridiculous when we're putting solar in good-quality farmland."It's something that the developers probably don't want to do because it means that they've got to strengthen roofs, etcetera, but doesn't it make sense?"He added the issue had come up regularly on the doorstep during campaigning. Despite being a member of a party that is openly sceptical about the causes of climate change, Griffith insists: "I don't deny climate change, but I think our net zero targets are the things that are really holding our country back, so that's what my group are very, very concerned party's much-publicised Doge-style efficiency review is also on the agenda in North said it "will include the possibility of bringing in party experts" to scrutinise expenditure and systems at the added: "We're not going to pay a penny [for the Doge review] so that's why our officers are fully in support of this." Helen Harrison, the leader of the Conservative opposition on the council, said: "We will support them when their proposals are in the interests of the people of North Northamptonshire and will constructively challenge them when we believe they are not."If the new administration continues to prioritise cost-effective services and our policy of prioritising road repairs, we will support it. "We will, of course, look at each proposal on its merits." Follow Northamptonshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Telegraph
41 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Non-crime hate incidents should be scrapped, says ‘anti-woke' police chief
Non-crime hate incidents have gone too far and should be scrapped, the head of Greater Manchester Police has said. Sir Stephen Watson said the policy had been introduced with good intentions but was now past its 'sell-by date'. He stressed it was not the job of the police to involve themselves in people's arguments, and said the collection of non-crime hate incident data had fuelled the accusations of two-tier policing. In a speech to the Policy Exchange think tank, the Chief Constable, who was knighted in the King's recent birthday honours list, urged police forces to get back to basics in order to restore public trust and confidence. He also hit out at the impact human rights legislation was having on policing, saying it was not right that foreign criminals who 'fecklessly fathered children' could then avoid deportation by claiming the right to a family life. A non-crime hate incident is defined as an incident that falls short of being criminal but is perceived to be motivated by hostility or prejudice towards a person with a particular characteristic. Non-crime hate incidents were introduced in 2014 following recommendations made in the Macpherson Report into the racist killing of Stephen Lawrence. They are intended to provide forces with an intelligence picture of community tensions and help them understand where problems might suddenly arise, but have often resulted in police intervening in social media spats, with critics claiming they have a chilling effect on free speech. There are also concerns that they serve as a distraction for stretched police officers, who would be better off concentrating on serious crime. Asked if he believed whether the policy of collecting non-crime hate incident data should be scrapped, Sir Stephen said: 'Simple answer – yes, I think it should. I think the policy has passed its sell-by date.' He said it was the 'antithesis' of doing the basics and was at odds with the public perception of what was right. Sir Stephen conceded that the policy was introduced so police could have a better understanding of vulnerable people in their communities. But he added: 'What it morphed into was pretty much anybody with a protected characteristic who perceived themselves to be a victim of an incident, because of that, was automatically recorded. I think that's a mistake, and I think it went too far.' Sir Stephen was also critical of the impact some areas of the Human Rights Act was having on policing and confidence in the justice system. He said: 'The Human Rights Act is part of the panoply of the legislative machinery within which we have to operate. And candidly, you know, as a police officer it is less helpful for me to pontificate on what the legislative framework should look like. It's simply observing what it is and faithfully serving it in the public interest. 'However, there are manifestations of the Human Rights Act, which I think impacts policing and society more generally, I mean classically, foreign national offenders and the ability to deport people. 'It seems to me that is entirely unhelpful, particularly when people are simply claiming on the basis of having, very often, fecklessly fathered the number of children in our country, that they somehow shouldn't be deported because they have the right to a family life. Well, I suspect most of the public beg to differ.' Greater Manchester Police was in special measures when Sir Stephen was appointed four years ago, but he has turned the force around thanks to a traditional, no-nonsense approach to policing. He said getting the basics correct was vital if police forces were to deliver what the public expected. He added: 'It's picking up the phone, it's getting to people. It's turning up looking like you can pull the skin off a rice pudding. 'It's about being smart, it's about being professional, it's about being compassionate, it's about being diligent. 'It's about understanding the law, and it's about demonstrating to the public that you care and you're hungry to help because they don't ring us because they want to talk to us, they ring us because bad things are happening in their lives, things that are causing them and their families great consternation. 'It's about recording all crime faithfully, it is about investigating every reasonable line of enquiry for a single crime, and it's about locking people up. And it's about doing all of this with vim and vigour to demonstrate to the public that we're there to be relied upon.'
