The government has been warned that cutting disability benefits by as much as £30 a week could lead to many disabled people entering poverty, instead of incentivising them back into the workplace.
An all-party group of MP’s has highlighted that governmental plans to cut disability benefits for new claimants could push some towards poverty and make it harder for them to find work. Ministers have justified the cost cuttings on the grounds that a reduction in weekly disability benefits would remove some of the ‘incentives’ that discourage some from re-entering the workplace.
This all-party report stated that while the cuts in disability allowances would generate estimated savings of £450million a year by 2021, there is a large risk of disabled people’s likelihood of moving into work and their quality of life being affected in the process.
The new disability allowance cut, which is due to come into force this coming April, will affect nearly half a million claimants over the next four years. The all-party committee stated that for newer employment and support (ESA) claimants the impact would be larger as they still face higher living costs than other claimants.
Chief executive of Disability Rights UK, Liz Sayce, stated that there has been not one disability employment or benefits expert who agrees that these latest cuts to disability allowances will incentivise disabled people to find a job. The reduction in income is likely to make life harder, rather than easier.
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