The disability benefits cut showcases the Government’s flagrant disregard for evidence | Left Foot Forward

Last Updated: March 18, 2016By

Over the last 20 years, spending on Disability Living Allowance or Personal Independence Payments (PIP) has almost quadrupled in real terms. As a result, it has become an obstacle to George Osborne meeting his self-imposed, nominal welfare cap.

On the chancellor’s terms, that means it needs to be cut. And the cut has been savage — the  IFS projects that 370,000 people with disabilities will lose an average of £3,500 a year.

The problem is: we don’t know why spending has increased so significantly, and neither does the Government.

And, despite a string of embarrassingly large upward revisions to spending forecasts, the Government has never been bothered to find out.

In other words, this was a blind cut, made without evidence of the causes of the spending increase, or potential impacts of the reduction.

The unholy alliance of the Department for Work and Pensions and the Treasury simply didn’t like how high PIP spending was and, instead of undertaking a holistic investigation of what social shifts were driving the change, decided to slash it.

Read more: The disability benefits cut showcases the Government’s flagrant disregard for evidence | Left Foot Forward

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16 Comments

  1. hayfords March 18, 2016 at 9:50 pm - Reply

    I know you will be pleased that IDS has resigned over disability cuts a few minutes ago.

  2. Desert March 18, 2016 at 9:57 pm - Reply

    The consultation seems to heavily rely upon opinions of Capita/Maximus consultants who are paid by the Government.
    “Further work by DWP health professionals has found that aids and appliances are not a reliable indicator of extra costs in all cases. In 96% of the cases they reviewed their view was that claimants were likely to have low, minimal or nil on-going extra costs.”
    Also bearing in mind it was headed by an Economist ( https://tinyurl.com/ju89w74 ) so the focus was always going to be financial and not about needs.

  3. Neilth March 18, 2016 at 10:19 pm - Reply

    So IDS has resigned in what sounds like a fit of pique because his chums have realised that his ‘reforms’ have gone too far in attacking the disabled to the tune of £30 a week and they’ve dropped him like a cup of cold sick. I reckon he’s quit before he’s pushed and just to try too avoid further public vilification is now trying to blame his outrages on the Bullingdon Bullies.

  4. Daniel March 18, 2016 at 10:37 pm - Reply
  5. joanna March 18, 2016 at 10:43 pm - Reply

    Iain Duncan Smith has resigned!!!! Whoo HOO!!! Party!!!!

  6. Brian March 19, 2016 at 2:06 am - Reply

    Well to me, in my humble opinion it’s clear why it’s gone up. While the Government has allowed immigration, with no history of contributing tax receipts, many perhaps with health problems, yet drawing on the resources, there is bound to be an imbalance, at least in the short term.

    Add to that, the desperately low wage levels that encourage an unhealthy life. Further, the population is not growing proportionately, with less indigenous families having children and fewer of working age to pay tax with a growing pensioner presence.

    It may only get worse before it gets better, as to be added are those that ‘survive’ the cull, who will no doubt deteriorate due to their experience with this government. But I admit, these statements are conjecture, something the Tories would never admit to doing.

    • Mike Sivier March 19, 2016 at 2:39 pm - Reply

      Immigrants don’t get immediate access to UK benefits.
      You can’t force UK nationals to have children, or immigrants not to.

    • Daniel March 19, 2016 at 5:22 pm - Reply

      The only problem with your opinion is that, while welfare spending has increased, actual payments to sick, disabled and unemployed people has been going down. The reason the bill is going up is the extraordinary amount of cash wasted by the DWP on failed projects like UC and legal costs fighting court cases. Sadly, this information is rarely highlighted by the media or by the DWP themselves!

  7. Terry Davies March 19, 2016 at 8:56 am - Reply

    dont be fooled by his resignation he has other reasons in addition to those offered by comments.
    He clearly wants to distant himself from the mainstream tory thinking, discredit osborne and give credit to brexit.
    its also useful as a source of distrsction from Camerons stated intention to privatise the education system and to send groundtroops to Libya.

  8. ian725 March 19, 2016 at 1:37 pm - Reply

    With I D S its most likely that he ‘jumped before he was pushed’. This escapade puts him in the frame for the top job plus the Tory Public will see his move favourably. Just my humble opinion of course.

  9. toocomplex4justice March 20, 2016 at 12:20 pm - Reply

    It’s damage limitation.
    He knows he could be held responsible for all the deaths caused by HIS staff under HIS guidance so he’s trying to pretend that he was always against the cuts but was just doing his job but he was not qualified to understand which issues and conditions his cuts could bring about.

    Remember the Marchioness? There is no excuse, if you cannot opperate it then you should not buy it, run it or touch it. The marchioness was an accident but the DWP Cull was deliberate.

    The vast number of murders by one person justifies a special situation where capital punishment might be appropriate with the loss of all dignity that comes with it may serve as a warning to any future rogue parties that Britain does not tolerate its population being killed. I Suggest hanging Tudor style so that he dies of a sore neck and wet trousers over a long period of time. He could also be given a PIP application form to fill in while he’s there to see if he would qualify for it.

  10. Brian March 21, 2016 at 3:37 pm - Reply

    I’m becoming a little concerned as to some of the comments posted on this site. Many of the government personnel attacked here may well feel slandered at the hurtful and derogatory comments. Perhaps anyone off them affected will see fit to challenge commentators and bring them to book through the courts. It only requires evidence that the comments are untrue. Who will be the first RH to take up this gauntlet?

    • Mike Sivier March 21, 2016 at 6:30 pm - Reply

      Good luck to anybody who tries!

      • Neilth March 21, 2016 at 7:43 pm - Reply

        They can only be charged if what they say is untrue. Given that opinions can also be expressed based on people’s observations of what is going on thus expressing ones opinion is not usually actionable. Thus it is my opinion that no one will try to go to court because they would not want to be exposed to the cold glare of justice.

  11. mrmarcpc March 21, 2016 at 4:20 pm - Reply

    He’s gone to embarrass Camoron over the EU but also to get away from the barrage of well-deserved abuse that he’s received since day one for all the evil that he’s inflicted on the poor and sick of our nation, good riddance to bad rubbish the bald, useless, evil, nazi bastard of a man who failed as tory leader and in his last position, time he was consigned to the history books forever!

    • Brian March 21, 2016 at 10:35 pm - Reply

      Again, I must object, IDS must have had a father, somewhere.

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