A young disabled person just shamed Treasury secretary Darren Jones over DWP PIP cuts

At a constituency town hall event on Saturday 7 June, Gigi, a young, disabled constituent, stood up and challenged chief secretary to the Treasury and Bristol North West MP Darren Jones on the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) planned cuts to PIP.

DWP PIP: constituent calls out Treasury secretary Darren Jones

Gigi, 27, held a banner reading “PIP: Lifeline not pocket money”, in reference to Jones comparing DWP PIP benefits to his children’s pocket money:

She urged Jones’ department to introduce wealth taxes on the super-rich instead of cutting DWP PIP benefits for disabled people, which the government’s own impact assessments suggest will drive 350,000 people into poverty.

She also raised the case of Jodey Whiting, who died by suicide aged 42 in 2017, days after the DWP removed her disability benefits. A coroner found that Whiting’s death was precipitated by the DWP decision.

‘PAY UP’: a campaign to make the super-rich pay their fair share

Mad Youth Organise and Green New Deal Rising coordinated the intervention as part of Green New Deal Rising’s ‘PAY UP’ campaign. This is urging the government to introduce wealth taxes to fund investment in public services, climate action, and as an alternative to cuts. It advocates for a range of changes to the tax system which would raise £50bn for public investment.

This comes amid reports that the government is considering softening cuts to DWP PIP benefits after fierce backlash from Labour MPs. A vote is expected this month. So far, more than 100 Labour MPs have signed a letter opposing the cuts.

Mad Youth Organise is a campaign by Just Treatment led by people with lived experience of mental illness. It is calling out the corporations driving the mental health crisis and demanding decent treatment for all.

Green New Deal Rising is a youth movement. It’s currently campaigning for the government to introduce wealth taxes on the super-rich via a wave of youth-led action across the UK.

The two groups are have also emphasised that:

• An annual 2% wealth tax on assets over £10m could raise £6.1bn from the top 20 billionaires on the Sunday Times Rich List alone. This is enough to reverse cuts to winter fuel payments and PIP disability benefits.
• A recent briefing from Tax Justice UK and Patriotic Millionaires outlines 10 tax reforms and closed loopholes that could raise over £60bn.

Darren Jones MP ‘complicit in this cruel proposal’ to cut DWP PIP

This action follows another young DWP PIP recipient with Just Treatment and Green New Deal Rising challenging DWP boss Liz Kendall on the impact of PIP cuts in May. The work and pensions secretary notoriously simply walked away, ignoring her.

Gigi is a member of youth mental health advocacy group Mad Youth Organise. She said:

MPs like Darren Jones are complicit in this cruel proposal to cut benefits to the most vulnerable members of society. As a disabled person myself, I am terrified for my own future. PIP is a lifeline, I need it to pay for basics like medicine, transport and healthcare. Instead of punishing people like me, the government should implement a wealth tax on the super rich – who have seen their fortunes explode in recent years – and invest in proper support and infrastructure for people who are unwell or disabled.

Campaigner with Green New Deal Rising Zak Coleman said of the DWP PIP cuts:

UK Billionaires added £35 million to their fortunes every single day last year, as ordinary people face the longest hit to living standards on record. The super-rich have never had it so good. So instead of slashing life-saving support for the most vulnerable disabled people, it’s past time for this government to make the super-rich pay up through wealth taxes that would raise billions for investment in schools, hospitals, climate action and making life affordable for ordinary people again – not more cuts.

Featured image and additional images supplied