Some current recipients of health and disability benefits are likely to lose out under a planned overhaul of the welfare system, which is expected to tighten eligibility criteria for the Personal Independence Payment (PIP). Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall will set out how the government intends to reform the health benefits system on Tuesday afternoon, in a move aimed at cutting the growing welfare bill. Her package of reforms is expected to include more help and support for finding work, and the protection of payments to the most vulnerable. But the move has faced opposition from within Labour ranks over concern for the potential impact on vulnerable claimants. The government is hoping to reassure some recipients, and indeed some restless Labour MPs, that they will not lose out when welfare reforms are unveiled later on Tuesday. Initial reports had suggested PIP – the main disability benefit in England and Wales – would be frozen for a year. But reforms are now expected to focus on eligibility for the benefit instead. On Monday, Kendall insisted her planned changes would be fair, and ministers have said they will protect the most vulnerable. In practice, this is likely to mean that those clearly unable to work will not face further reassessments of their condition, and will keep the entirety of their payments. However, the eligibility criteria is set to be tightened for those with less severe conditions, meaning some current recipients will inevitably lose out. It is expected that unemployed people in receipt of Universal Credit, and who are actively looking for work, will see their benefit levels rise – though this is likely to be by a relatively modest amount. It is also expected that people with disabilities who try out a job will not lose their existing benefit entitlement if it goes wrong. The government is still facing resistance from within its own party, with Labour peer Baroness Shami Chakrabarti telling BBC Newsnight it was “wrong in principle” to cut benefits from people suffering from disabilities and illnesses.
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