Disabled people to get ‘right to try’ work without risk of losing benefits

Disabled people will have the right to try employment without the risk of losing their benefits under plans set to be announced as part of the government’s welfare reforms.

The concession comes as Sir Keir Starmer attempts to quell growing disquiet within his party and around the cabinet table over plans to cut the welfare bill.

Work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall is expected to announce legislation to introduce a “right to try guarantee” that will prevent people receiving health-related benefits from having their entitlements automatically reassessed if they enter employment.

The move is said to be in response to surveys suggesting disabled people and those with long-term health conditions fear they will not get their benefits back if they try employment, but it does not work out.

It comes amid growing concern over plans for sweeping welfare cuts expected to be announced by the government next week, as charities warn that thousands of disabled people could be forced into poverty.

As the prime minister attempts to persuade cabinet ministers and Labour MPs alike that there is a “moral case” for cutting the welfare bill, there are growing fears that as many as 1 million people could see their benefits reduced.

According to The Times, the overhaul will deny payments to people with mental health conditions and those who struggle with washing, dressing themselves and eating.

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Ms Kendall is also expected to slash the top rate of incapacity benefit, which currently means those deemed unfit for any work are paid upwards of £800 a month. The payment is double what jobseekers are paid.

There is also concern about possible cuts to personal independence payments (PIP) – disability benefits which are paid regardless of whether someone is working.

However No 10 is considering ditching plans for the PIP not to rise in line with inflation for a year, as reported by the BBC.

Labour MP Rachael Maskell, who is strongly opposed to the welfare cuts, told The Independent that the plans could be “very costly, not just financially as people end up in more expensive parts of the system like the NHS or social care, but in terms of people’s lives”.

She urged the government to properly “support people who struggle to work, delving deep into Labour values, by ensuring no-one sinks further into poverty”.

Brian Leishman, MP for Alloa and Grangemouth, said welfare cuts will be a “defining issue for the party, the government and the country”, calling for ministers to “be the change people voted for last summer” and reject proposed cuts.

Meanwhile, Jon Sparkes, chief executive of learning disability charity Mencap, told The Independent that taking away PIP would “force thousands of disabled people into poverty”.

“We are hearing deeply distressing reports from people who are feeling extremely stressed and anxious about what the changes could mean for them. Some have already reached rock bottom”, said Mr Sparkes.

“Nearly 200,000 people with a learning disability rely on PIP to support them with unavoidable costs related to being disabled such as specialist food, higher energy bills, accessible transport or social care support.”

Mikey Erhardt of Disability Rights UK said the plans will “make more people sicker, further undermine people’s right to a decent quality of life and further entrench barriers to access, employment, and social inclusion faced by disabled people”.

He accused ministers of focussing on the “symptoms of our broken society, rather than tackling the underlying causes of sickness, disability and poverty”, warning that cutting PIP when “disabled people are some of the worst affected by the cost of living crisis would be morally unacceptable”.

“It would demonstrate that government has no interest in tackling the barriers that stop millions of disabled people from living a decent life”, he warned.

And Mel Merritt of the National Autistic Society warned that taking away access to benefits “without a clear plan for tackling the extensive barriers they face will only make things harder for autistic people who want to work, and risks unfairly punishing those who can’t”.

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The government has held a number of meetings with backbench MPs in order to persuade them of the plans, which have sparked concern across the party, with even cabinet ministers said to be divided on the issue.

But in spite of the opposition, on Friday the chancellor backed the need to reform the welfare system, insisting it is broken and is “not working for anyone”.

Meanwhile, the prime minister denied Britain would be “returning to austerity” under the changes but said the cost of benefits is “going through the roof”. He claimed that the existing system cannot be justified on “moral or economic” terms.

A Department for Work and Pensions spokesperson said: “We have been clear that the current welfare system is broken and needs reform, so it is fairer on the taxpayer, helps long-term sick and disabled people who can work to find employment, whilst ensuring it provides support for those who need it most.

“We have a duty to get the welfare bill on a more sustainable path and we will achieve that through meaningful, principled reforms rather than arbitrary cuts to spending. That’s why as part of our Plan for Change we will bring forward our proposals for reform shortly that will unlock work to help us reach our ambition of an 80 per cent employment rate, and is fairer for all.”