Scarborough and Whitby MP ‘deeply concerned’ about Government’s welfare cut proposals

Speaking at a meeting before this week’s Spring Statement when Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced further details about proposed benefit cuts, Alison Hume MP said she was “deeply concerned” about the impact on people with disabilities.

The Member of Parliament for Scarborough and Whitby said she was “well aware from the casework I get, about the number of constituents who rely on benefits” and that she would be raising concerns with Liz Kendall, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.

Speaking at a meeting of the Scarborough and Whitby area committee last week, Coun Tony Randerson said: “There are hundreds if not thousands of disabled people that rely on PIP and other support who are extremely concerned about these slashes to the welfare state.

“Dozens of families have been in touch with me, especially on my patch, who are beyond themselves with worry, so I’d like a straight answer about what your thoughts are on this and what you’d say to the constituents who have put their faith in you?”

Ms Hume told the meeting: “The main reason I stood to be a Member of Parliament was because I was a disability campaigner and it’s well known and a matter of public record that my second child was born with complex disabilities, and it was my experience fighting for services for him that brought me to public office.

“The Government has made an announcement on changes to welfare and there is a green paper and consultation that will take place over the next 12 weeks.

“You’ve asked me for my personal opinion; I am deeply concerned about one particular area and that is the decision to only award PIP to people who score four points in the ‘daily living’ person care.

“I will be writing to Liz Kendall at the DWP with my concerns and I believe this could potentially exclude people with complex disabilities from receiving support.”

According to the Government’s own figures, the welfare cuts will drive 250,000 people into relative poverty by the end of the decade.

The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has said that the changes to benefits will save £3.4bn in 2029/30 instead of the £5bn which was claimed by ministers.

The proposed reforms would include stricter tests for personal independence (PIP) payments, affecting hundreds of thousands of claimants.

Speaking at the meeting, the Labour MP said: “I’m also concerned about the possibility of excluding people who are under 22 from receiving additional support, and I am well aware from the casework I get, about the number of constituents who rely on benefits.

“I have to say, we are an outlier in this country in the amount of money we spend on benefits compared to other countries and there is a disproportionate number of young people on benefits compared with what we would expect.

“There are issues from the pandemic and issues about access to mental health services particularly, but there is an unsustainable welfare bill and any government has to address that.”