Liz Kendall has said the Government’s flagship welfare reforms will create the “better future we seek to build for our constituents and our country”, as she faced backbench Labour MPs. The Work and Pensions Secretary’s appearance at a Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP) meeting on Monday night came after warnings from Labour backbenchers in the Commons that the reforms will lead to “appalling poverty”.
Under the proposals, ministers will limit eligibility for the personal independence payment (Pip), the main disability payment in England, and limit the sickness-related element of universal credit (UC). Ms Kendall’s appearance at the committee was her first since the Government published its welfare reform Bill, and since Labour MP Vicky Foxcroft resigned as a Government whip because of her concerns over the package.
Ms Kendall told the meeting there is “no route to social justice based on greater benefit spending alone”. Ministers have previously said the reforms could save up to £5 billion a year.
But in a sign they are now emphasising a moral case for the Bill over its financial savings, Ms Kendall told MPs: “The path to a fairer society – one where everyone thrives, where people who can work get the support they need, and where we protect those who cannot – that is the path we seek to build with our reforms.
“Our plans are rooted in fairness – for those who need support and for taxpayers. They are about ensuring the welfare state survives, so there is always a safety net for those who need it. They’re about putting proper safeguards in place to protect the most vulnerable.
“But above all they are about our belief that everyone can fulfil their potential and live their hopes and dreams when, collectively, we provide them with real opportunities and support. This is the better future we seek to build for our constituents and our country.” More than 20 MPs asked Ms Kendall questions about the reforms during the PLP meeting, the PA news agency understands, with most being broadly supportive, but a small minority insisting they would vote against the plans in the Commons.
MPs leaving the meeting told journalists there was far more consensus about the reforms than it outwardly appeared. But in the Commons before the gathering, Labour MPs continued to voice their concerns.
Richard Burgon, Leeds East MP, said: “Isn’t the simple and sad truth that any MP who votes for this upcoming welfare Bill is voting to take Pip from disabled people who need assistance to cut up their food, wash themselves and go to the toilet?” Work and Pensions minister Sir Stephen Timms replied: “No. What people will be voting for is reforms to open up opportunities for people who have been denied opportunities for far, far too long. We’re putting that right.”
Andy McDonald, MP for Middlesbrough and Thornaby East, said: “Ministers have highlighted the scale of Pip recipients expected to lose payments make up one in 10 of the total Pip caseload, suggesting the impact of the cuts will be limited, but that’s still 370,000 current recipients expected to lose on average £4,500. But these numbers rest on a set of assumptions that the OBR (Office for Budget Responsibility) has described as highly uncertain. DWP (Department for Work and Pensions) data shows there are 1.3 million people currently receiving Pip daily living payments who would not meet the new criteria.
“So before MPs are asked to vote on imposing such appalling poverty, will the DWP or the OBR provide further evidence underpinning these claims?” Sir Stephen replied: “Well, the OBR has published its assessment. (Mr McDonald) is absolutely right, their assessment is that one in 10 of those who are receiving Pip in November next year will have lost it by 2029/30.
“Following that, we will be able to introduce the biggest investment there has ever been in employment support for people out of work on health and disability grounds, because we don’t want any longer to track people on low income for years and years and years, we want people to be able to enter work and fulfil their ambitions, and that’s what the investment will allow.”
The Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill will be debated on July 1, when it receives its second reading in the Commons. Pip is a benefit aimed at helping with extra living costs if someone has a long-term physical or mental health condition or disability and difficulty doing certain everyday tasks or getting around because of their condition.
Data for Pip claimants begins in January 2019, when the number was 2.05 million. An impact assessment published alongside the Bill confirmed previously published estimates that changes to Pip entitlement rules could see about 800,000 people lose out, with an average loss of £4,500 per year.
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