At the same time, the government is moving forward with disability benefit cuts, which will reduce payments by £4.8 billion and impact three million people. The reforms, announced in the spring statement by Chancellor Rachel Reeves, have caused major backlash, with oppositon MPs pledging to oppose them. Some have warned of the "mother of all rebellions" against the changes, reports the Times.
So far, around a dozen backbenchers have openly rejected the policy, but ministers are working to win support and avoid a major revolt.
The cuts will also affect more than 150,000 people receiving carer’s allowance. Since the person they care for will no longer qualify for personal independence payments, they will lose their financial support. Official estimates suggest this change alone will save £500 million.
Steve Darling, a Lib-Dem spokesman, slammed the move, calling it “the biggest cuts to carer’s allowance for decades.” He warned that some families could lose as much as £12,000 a year. Labour MP Rachael Maskell has also called for the government to “withdraw this policy,” while Carers UK said claimants are “shocked, worried, and scared.”
However, Disability Minister Sir Stephen Timms defended the reforms, arguing that spending on disability benefits is still set to rise—from £36 billion last year to £59 billion by the end of the decade. "We do have to make some reductions," he said, adding that the government is making changes "in a compassionate way."
New data shows that for the first time, a quarter of the UK population reports having a disability that has a "substantial" and "long-term" effect on their ability to function. The sharpest increase is among working-age people, with 24% now identifying as disabled—up from 19% before the pandemic and 16% a decade ago.
Mental health issues are playing a growing role in disability claims. About 5.8 million people say their mental health problems are severe enough to be classified as a disability, an increase of two million since 2019. Among working-age people with disabilities, 48% cite mental illness as their main issue, up from 39% in 2018.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has previously raised concerns about "overdiagnosis" of mental health conditions, but Minesh Patel of the charity Mind said that "seismic events like the Covid-19 pandemic and the cost of living crisis" have contributed to worsening mental health across the country.
Patel urged the government to focus on improving NHS mental health services rather than cutting benefits. "This would put more people in a position to enter and remain in work," he said.
