Kendall sets out 'pro-work' benefits changes

The enactment and pensions caput has promised to tackle the "perverse incentives" driving radical to beryllium connected benefits, arsenic she acceptable retired wide-ranging changes to the payment system.

Liz Kendall said the plans would make "a much proactive, pro-work strategy for those who tin work", portion protecting those who cannot.

Eligibility for disablement payments volition beryllium restricted to those with the top need, and the trial to suffice for the other cosmopolitan recognition outgo for wellness conditions volition beryllium replaced.

The health-related apical ups volition besides beryllium frozen for existent claimants and reduced for caller applicants.

The bundle of measures are expected to prevention much than £5bn by 2029/30.

Spending connected health-related benefits has ballooned successful caller years and is forecast to proceed rising successful the coming years.

However, immoderate Labour MPs and charities are disquieted astir the imaginable interaction of restricting benefits connected susceptible people.

In effect to these concerns, the authorities has abandoned the thought of a one-year frost to the level of idiosyncratic independency payments (Pips), which supply assistance with other surviving costs for radical who person a semipermanent carnal oregon intelligence wellness condition.

But Kendall said eligibility for the outgo - the main disablement payment successful England, Wales and Northern Ireland - would beryllium tightened.

Under the existent system, applicants are scored connected their quality to transportation retired mundane tasks.

From November 2026, determination volition beryllium an further request to people a minimum 4 points successful astatine slightest 1 enactment to suffice for the regular surviving constituent of the payment.

The mobility constituent of Pips, for those who request assistance getting around, volition not beryllium affected.

Kendall announced enactment capableness assessments, which are utilized to find whether idiosyncratic is acceptable to enactment and if they tin person further benefits payments due to the fact that of a wellness information oregon disability, would beryllium scrapped successful 2028.

She said the assessments were "complex, time-consuming and often stressful for claimants", arsenic good arsenic being based "on a binary can-can't enactment divide".

In the future, fiscal enactment for wellness conditions volition lone beryllium disposable done the Pip assessment, based connected the interaction of someone's wellness information alternatively than their capableness to work.