Benefit cuts proposal

[Charliechoosecarefully]

I just wanted it to have a specific thread:-

Kendall says government to consult on merging JSA and ESA benefits.

Kendall says WCA being scrapped, with Pip assessment process being used instead - will be scrapped in 2028.

Kendall says 'right to try' will let people on sickness benefits try work without immediately having benefits cut.

Kendall says UC payments being rebalanced, with standard rate going up, and some health top-ups frozen or cut.

Kendall says reassessments for people on universal credit with health top-ups to be beefed up

Kendall says universal credit claimants with most severe disabilities will not face reassessment

Kendall confirms Pip eligibility rules to be tightened, and assessment process to be reviewed - 4 pointed needed in one descriptor.

Kendall says under-22s could be prevented from claiming health top-up for universal credit

Sourced from the guardian.

Never mind £10 telephone top ups! How much is it to house them in those hotels?
I'm not saying we're generous to them per se, just that there are so many it all adds up
I don’t have the relevant figures. What I do know is that it’ll be as cheap as possible. I also know that some of the places where they are held awaiting approval or deportation they have no soap, shampoo etc. Sometimes they only have the clothes they stand in. I also know of the women at one of these places, so far, every single release has been given leave to stay. .

Do you mean asylum seekers? Illegal immigrants would be deported as soon as they made themselves known to the authorities.

Asylum seekers receive a very small allowance so they don't starve.

The issue is the Gov is saying tightening PIP is about only giving it to those who truly need it, and encouraging work. The problems with this is that PIP isn’t an out of work benefit and 99.9% of those on PIP do need it. So cutting PIP is going to harm innocent disabled people for being disabled.

The fraud rate 0.1%(£23million lost) for PIP while it is 10.9% (£5,600 million aka £5.6bn lost) for UC. They are literally encouraging more money lost to fraud to take money from PIP and give more money to UC to combat fraud.

None of which you get once diagnosed ASD. No support afterwards. No new evidence down the line.

How have you calculated your claims of fraudulent cases and by what methodology?

I’m not sure how you haven’t grasped that illness and disability have their own paper trails that can prove fraud - medical consults, tests, diagnosis, treatment.

You can’t just pitch up and say you’ve got MND and can’t move with no supporting evidence and expect to be taken seriously.

Evidence from a gp is the gp asking you questions. Not getting you in a kitchen to see how long you can stand and whether you can chop the veg up.
Theres no physical tests required and no cameras outside or inside your house.
People can tell a gp whatever they like and he/ she will write it down
To claim no one inflates their condition is ridiculous.

They can already claim PIP but if under 22 and a care leaver who relies on UC after leaving a special school he went to a special school all his life and on 29 PIP points for daily living alone won't be able to claim LCWRA anymore. Unlikely he'll ever be able to work but now wont be able to afford absolutely anything for himself. Have to wait until he's 22 to get it he's 18 now.

Same I don't think some people realise the affects of a severe depressive episode i also used to be a mental health nurse, I have seen patients in a catatonic state due to their depression literally not being able to lift their head off their pillow to take a drink
And indeed some where treated with ECT

I have a good understanding of the PIP process. What do you think medical evidence looks like for depression or anxiety? I'm not talking about extreme depression requiring sectioning etc but the kind of depression and anxiety that would make you just about eligible for PIP. It is totally possible that a reasonably dedicated person with a good understanding of how PIP works could ascertain this evidence without actually suffering from these conditions.

@MaidOfSteel

I receive contributions based ESA and I’m in the Support Group. I’m having trouble understanding what this merger means. Am I going to lose all my ESA?

are you on legacy ESA rather than the new style?

The merger is of new style JSA and ESA (which wasn't clarified in the speech). There appears to be no mention of legacy benefits in the green paper.

I think the court cases over premiums have made them a real issue for both the last and current government in terms of being able to target them. If its legacy conts ESA you can relax, there are no announced changes to that for now.

That’s probably why the fraud rate is so low. But as that poster stated it refers to people committing identity fraud (ie pretending to be someone they’re not or claiming twice) not people lying about or exaggerating their symptoms

It doesn’t make any sense.

No, they haven’t said the severely disabled are protected, they’ve worded it the “most” in every case. It’s like saying the “most” poor are protected by the child benefit cap, it’s meaningless doublespeak.

I'm wondering if these changes are also away to cut the carers allowance bill, as you can only get carers allowance for someone receiving the highest rate for daily living on PIP.
So lots of carers will lose money, and I'm surprised this isn't in the news too. It won't look good for Labour, and I say that as a Labour voter.

I've always worked, until injury and health issues meant i have been off work for a year. Under the new rules I would lose my PIP standard care, and the LCWRA if this came in. Lost my job yesterday as everyone accepts i need months of surgery, rehab and recovery. Great timing.

No it doesn’t, that poster was grossly mistaken.

So if you are severely disabled why are you concerned? This will not affect you. Are you misunderstanding what they are suggesting?

I am sorry you are feeling so sad with your life, I have a disability and CPTSD and I have learnt ways to live with it. Have you had counselling? It is free on the NHS now if you ask your dr.

The under 22's one is sickening if it is also including those who are severely disabled which I assume it will do.

I suppose you’ve never heard of a functional assessment by an OT then? Because this is exactly what they do.

Apart from those who present as UASC which is often a 30 year old man pretending he's 16. Then they have to be treated as LAC until SS can prove they're not actually a child. This can take a long time and be extremely costly.

@x2boys

I thought they could?
Ww currently claim for our severely autistic son who goes to a special school for children with severe and profound learning disabilities, we also get UC for him untill he is 19 after 19 he could claim it in his right ,he will be at " college" untill he is 25
If its true he won't be able ti claim UC it's asignificant amount of money he loses he can't work ,he's completely non verbal, has very limited understanding of the world around him etc etc.

He will be able to claim basic UC, but wouldn't be entitled to the health component until 22 under the new plans.

Again so polarised on here. Those who are severely disabled and/or with long-time conditions presumably won't be affected if I read the report right?

I don't understand why people keep popping up on here giving their life stories when likely their benefits will continue?

It's terribly sad that the young feel that it's not worth working. MH is often quoted and is the fastest group of claimants - too much talk about MH and 'labelling' things which are normal, every day variations and struggles (before anyone jumps on me, yes, I know severe MH issues exist). Those YP are done a disservice by not forcing them into the work place. Staying at home makes these things worse (I've worked with it, I've had family members with MH issues).

It's not that I want there to be a stigma because there are people who are absolutely reliant and should receive support. BUT I sense that in the past there used to be a thing about 'I'm going to do everything not to claim benefits' a certain level of pride in working hard which I think just isn't there anymore.

With the NEET generation I wonder whether perhaps compulsory military service which has been existing in many countries in Europe might be a good idea. Particularly for men, as it teaches them team work, civic duty and gives them a framework and structure from which they can grow.

To be fair we are not very good at deporting people so it’s unlikely that they would be deported straight away. But yes, illegal migrants don’t have recourse to benefits.

What is the money used for? Is it to buy in services? If so will they be provided by the NHS / social services instead?