The Government’s recent announcement regarding changes to welfare support has prompted a significant amount of correspondence from people across Maidstone and Malling. I appreciate there are strong views on this matter and wish to provide some assurances on my position.
Under the previous Conservative government, in the second quarter of 2024, 5.5 million disabled people were in work, a number that continued rising with an additional 310,000 disabled people in work in 2024 compared to 2023. The Labour government should promote opportunities to improve access to the workplace, as often routes into employment are the best way to support families out of poverty and to improve mental health.
In order to provide more opportunities for disabled people to enter the workplace, the government’s focus ought to be on creating economic growth and jobs for all in our society. However, the Chancellor’s Budget in October, Spring Statement and Spending Review make it plainly clear that the government’s actions here do not match their rhetoric.
I am disappointed to see that the Government's changes to Winter Fuel Allowance proposed in the Chancellor's Autumn Budget (2024) saw 1.6 million disabled people lose access to this valuable financial support, a decline of 71 percent of older disabled people currently receiving this benefit. When this was presented to the House of Commons, I voted against changing this provision.
In order to make up for the shortfalls in public sector finances which have been exacerbated by this government, the Chancellor has chosen cuts to welfare without sufficient consultation with those affected. Most worryingly amongst these are cuts to PIP for disabled people. I firmly believe that reforms to our welfare system should focus on delivering adequate support to those who need it most; and in many cases this means cutting down on fraud and error by the Department of Work and Pensions to make sure every penny spent supports an individual in need.
I shall endeavour to promote improved access to employment opportunities for disabled people wherever possible, and to make sure that support when genuinely needed is there to help.