As reported by the Canary, the Labour government (specifically Liz Kendall) has been eyeing up Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) cuts which may well negatively impact disabled people.
Much to the worry of many, Labour has refused to provide clarity on how they will deliver these cuts. Some, like ourselves, have questioned whether Labour will press ahead with the brutal austerity savings proposed by the previous Tory government.
So, on 24 November, work and pensions secretary Kendall yet again refused to answer this question. She did, however, make clear that Labour will make ‘savings’ which match the proposed Tory ‘cuts’:
BREAKING: Laura Kuenssberg “I want to be really clear…The plans you inherited from the former Gov’t would mean more than 400,000 people would be denied as much as £400 a month. You want to make that saving”
Work & Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall “We will deliver those savings” pic.twitter.com/kxmY6AOl2R
— Peter Stefanovic (@PeterStefanovi2) November 24, 2024
Government sickos versus sick people
Kendall appeared on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, where the titular host said to her:
I just want to be really clear on what you will do, because the plans that you inherited from the former government would mean that more than 400,000 people would be denied maybe as much as £400 a month. You wanna make that saving-
Kendall interrupted at this point to confirm:
We will deliver those savings.
DWP cuts are confirmed then (or ‘savings’ as she euphemistically refers to them). What remains unclear, however, is whether Labour intends to screw over the the same 400,000 sick and disabled people as the Tories, or whether they have a different plan to gut this essential public service. This is what Kendall said next:
we will bring forward our own reforms. You will hear more about this when we launch our white paper on Tuesday
She added:
I’m saying we will bring forward our own reforms. You wouldn’t expect me to announce this on your programme. But my objective is that disabled people should have the same chances and rights to work as everybody else.
In other words, Labour is suggesting that sick and disabled people receiving the already-inadequate support provided need forcing back to work.
DWP cuts: doomed before they start
On 30 October, Canary writer Hannah Sharland wrote about the proposed Tory DWP cuts and Labour’s engagement with them. Her verdict was that the proposals will help very few people find work anyway (far fewer than even a pessimist might imagine):
if the government runs with them, it will be implementing these DWP WCA (Work Capability Assessment) reforms in the full knowledge of its harmful impact. Specifically, these changes will mean that the DWP will strip health-related benefits from over 450,000 people.
For each change, the DWP’s own figures showed a breakdown of just how many people would lose out due to DWP WCA changes. As Big Issue previously reported, this was:
- 163,000 for tightening the criteria on work as a risk to claimants.
- 260,000 for removing the mobility descriptor.
- 33,000 for changing the points awarded for people’s ability to leave their homes.
In particular, this applies to new DWP WCA-related claimants, or those who’ve had to reapply for them.
So, it means that hundreds of thousands of people will miss out on health-related benefits when it puts these changes in place.
And contrary to Reeves’ big-talk about helping people back into work, this won’t actually do that.
This is because the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has said these would mean just 5,100, 8,800, and 1,500 more people finding work respectively as a result of these changes. In other words, out of 457,000 people the DWP would deny benefits, just over 15,000 of those would actually likely move into work. What’s more, this says nothing of the mental and physical health impacts it will have on people – either in losing their benefits, or being forced into employment.
And “the jobs aren’t there” either
Many criticised Kendall following her appearance:
Liz Kendall, responsible for DWP, not batting an eyelid when asked about 400,000 disabled folk losing benefits, is in favour of Assisted Dying. No surprise there then. #bbclaurak
— Annie (@toady) November 24, 2024
I have just heard Liz Kendall MP, who is Secretary of State for Work and Pensions saying on the morning media round that Labour believes that everyone should have the chance to be ’earning or learning’.
This is another trite sound bite.
What about those who are caring?
What…
— Richard Murphy (@RichardJMurphy) November 24, 2024
Liz Kendall staunchly believes in welfare/benefits sanctions…despite strong opposition from disability & mental health awareness groups.
This isn’t Labour. She isn’t Labour. This is atrocious. #BBCLauraK
— ®️I©️🇰y ☮︎ 🇵🇸 (@VividRicky) November 24, 2024
The ludicrous Liz Kendall, infamous for getting just 4% in the 2015 Labour leadership election, talks of 'overhauling' Job Centres.
Good luck overhauling ours on Walton Vale.
It closed like many others months ago.
— Alan Gibbons (@mygibbo) November 24, 2024
Kendall has put particular focus around DWP cuts on young people, but some are suggesting many don’t have work because there aren’t jobs for them:
Liz Kendall needs to address the real elephant in the room for young people getting jobs
The jobs aren’t there 🤷♀️
I’ve got 2 teenage girls in college, constantly handing in CVs & many of their friends parents say the same, ignored or position gone#philips #bbclaurak pic.twitter.com/yM2cyTzdND
— kerry ✊💙Save Our NHS (@hewitson10) November 24, 2024
Others offered straightforward appraisals of Kendall like the following:
Liz Kendall is a nasty piece of work.
— LynnieB -Socialism or die. #Palestine #LFC #YNWA🍉 (@LynnBraben) November 24, 2024
DWP cuts due to failure
It’s true the UK has record numbers of people who are long-term sick. The reason for this is long Covid, which is a result of the pandemic which we mismanaged in comparison to similar nations. Now, those who are suffering as a result of government failures are being asked to suffer again; all because Labour and the Tories alike think the public need to pay so the rich can get richer.
Featured image via BBC
