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| Minister to soften impact of planned disability benefit cuts | Minister to soften impact of planned disability benefit cuts |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall is making changes to her package of welfare reforms in an attempt to reassure Labour MPs who are considering rebelling against the plans. | Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall is making changes to her package of welfare reforms in an attempt to reassure Labour MPs who are considering rebelling against the plans. |
| Kendall has tried to soften the impact of planned benefits cuts worth £5bn a year by 2030 before MPs vote on the government's welfare changes. | Kendall has tried to soften the impact of planned benefits cuts worth £5bn a year by 2030 before MPs vote on the government's welfare changes. |
| The welfare reform bill will include proposals to make it harder for disabled people with less severe conditions to claim personal independence payment (Pip). | The welfare reform bill will include proposals to make it harder for disabled people with less severe conditions to claim personal independence payment (Pip). |
| The BBC has been told anybody who loses Pip will receive the payment for a transitional period of 13 weeks, rather than the usual four weeks, before it is removed. | The BBC has been told anybody who loses Pip will receive the payment for a transitional period of 13 weeks, rather than the usual four weeks, before it is removed. |
| Carer's allowance will continue to be paid during the 13-week transition, but will be ended when Pip is taken away. | Carer's allowance will continue to be paid during the 13-week transition, but will be ended when Pip is taken away. |
| Benefits recipients with the most severe health conditions will not be reassessed and will receive extra income support through a universal credit payment. | Benefits recipients with the most severe health conditions will not be reassessed and will receive extra income support through a universal credit payment. |
| A scheme to give disabled people a right to try employment without the risk of losing their benefits will also be introduced at the same time as the welfare reform bill. | A scheme to give disabled people a right to try employment without the risk of losing their benefits will also be introduced at the same time as the welfare reform bill. |
| Kendall has described these additions as "non-negotiable" protections, which will be added to the bill before it is published next week. | Kendall has described these additions as "non-negotiable" protections, which will be added to the bill before it is published next week. |
| The protections were proposed in the government's Pathways to Work green paper and consulted on before Kendall decided to add them to the bill. | The protections were proposed in the government's Pathways to Work green paper and consulted on before Kendall decided to add them to the bill. |
| Kendall told the Guardian newspaper: "When we set out our reforms we promised to protect those most in need, particularly those who can never work. | Kendall told the Guardian newspaper: "When we set out our reforms we promised to protect those most in need, particularly those who can never work. |
| "I know from my 15 years as a constituency MP how important this is. It is something I take seriously and will never compromise on. | "I know from my 15 years as a constituency MP how important this is. It is something I take seriously and will never compromise on. |
| "That is why we are putting additional protections on the face of the Bill to support the most vulnerable and help people affected by the changes. | "That is why we are putting additional protections on the face of the Bill to support the most vulnerable and help people affected by the changes. |
| "These protections will be written into law, a clear sign they are non-negotiable." | "These protections will be written into law, a clear sign they are non-negotiable." |
| Labour discontent | Labour discontent |
| The BBC understands the protections had been raised in discussions between ministers, Labour MPs and disability rights groups. | The BBC understands the protections had been raised in discussions between ministers, Labour MPs and disability rights groups. |
| Dozens of Labour MPs have expressed concerns about the plans to cut Pip payments and the sickness-related element of universal credit (UC). | Dozens of Labour MPs have expressed concerns about the plans to cut Pip payments and the sickness-related element of universal credit (UC). |
| Many have said they are prepared to vote against the primary legislation the government needs to pass to make the changes to welfare payments. | Many have said they are prepared to vote against the primary legislation the government needs to pass to make the changes to welfare payments. |
| The welfare package as a whole could push an extra 250,000 people, including 50,000 children, into relative poverty, according to the government's impact assessment. | The welfare package as a whole could push an extra 250,000 people, including 50,000 children, into relative poverty, according to the government's impact assessment. |
| Neil Duncan-Jordan is one of 42 Labour MPs who wrote a letter that said the welfare reforms were "impossible to support" if changes were not made. | Neil Duncan-Jordan is one of 42 Labour MPs who wrote a letter that said the welfare reforms were "impossible to support" if changes were not made. |
| When asked what he made of the protections Kendall had added to the bill, Duncan-Jordan said: "Poverty delayed is still poverty." | When asked what he made of the protections Kendall had added to the bill, Duncan-Jordan said: "Poverty delayed is still poverty." |
| Another discontented Labour MP, Ian Byrne, said: "After 14 weeks do the disabled and sick affected miraculously end the need for the vital assistance being taken away? An absolute nonsense." | Another discontented Labour MP, Ian Byrne, said: "After 14 weeks do the disabled and sick affected miraculously end the need for the vital assistance being taken away? An absolute nonsense." |
| And Labour MP Rachael Maskell said Kendall had "just restated the proposals in Pathways to Work with a three-month transition before people lose their support". | And Labour MP Rachael Maskell said Kendall had "just restated the proposals in Pathways to Work with a three-month transition before people lose their support". |
| She added: "It will therefore not change the material facts nor my intention to vote against." | She added: "It will therefore not change the material facts nor my intention to vote against." |
| Another Labour MP said the added protections will not stop dozens of his colleagues from opposing the bill. | Another Labour MP said the added protections will not stop dozens of his colleagues from opposing the bill. |
| "The whips are pushing very hard with MPs but it's not working," the Labour MP said. | "The whips are pushing very hard with MPs but it's not working," the Labour MP said. |
| But one supportive Labour MP, Alex Ballinger, said Kendall's protections sounded sensible. | But one supportive Labour MP, Alex Ballinger, said Kendall's protections sounded sensible. |
| "I welcome these steps on welfare reform," he said. "I know many living with health challenges have been anxious about the changes, and I hope these additional protections show that the government is listening. | "I welcome these steps on welfare reform," he said. "I know many living with health challenges have been anxious about the changes, and I hope these additional protections show that the government is listening. |
| "I support reforms that provide people who want to work extra support to do so, while continuing to protect the most vulnerable." | "I support reforms that provide people who want to work extra support to do so, while continuing to protect the most vulnerable." |
| Some Labour MPs used the government's U-turn on winter fuel payments to renew their calls for the planned benefit cuts to be reversed. | Some Labour MPs used the government's U-turn on winter fuel payments to renew their calls for the planned benefit cuts to be reversed. |
| But on Thursday, Chancellor Rachel Reeves said the government would not row back on the cuts. | But on Thursday, Chancellor Rachel Reeves said the government would not row back on the cuts. |
| "We're not going to be changing that," she told the BBC. "It is important that we reform the way the welfare state works." | "We're not going to be changing that," she told the BBC. "It is important that we reform the way the welfare state works." |
| The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) says it expects 3.2 million families – a mixture of current and future recipients - to lose out financially, as a result of the total package of measures, with an average loss of £1,720 per year. | The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) says it expects 3.2 million families – a mixture of current and future recipients - to lose out financially, as a result of the total package of measures, with an average loss of £1,720 per year. |
| This includes 370,000 current Pip recipients who will no longer qualify and 430,000 future claimants who will get less than they would previously have been entitled to. | This includes 370,000 current Pip recipients who will no longer qualify and 430,000 future claimants who will get less than they would previously have been entitled to. |
| But ministers have stressed the figures do not factor in the government's plans to spend £1bn on helping the long-term sick and disabled back into work, or its efforts to reduce poverty. | But ministers have stressed the figures do not factor in the government's plans to spend £1bn on helping the long-term sick and disabled back into work, or its efforts to reduce poverty. |
| Ministers hope these efforts will boost employment among benefits recipients, at a time when 2.8 million people are economically inactive due to long-term sickness. | Ministers hope these efforts will boost employment among benefits recipients, at a time when 2.8 million people are economically inactive due to long-term sickness. |
| If nothing changes, the health and disability benefits bill is forecast to reach £70bn a year by the end of the decade, a level of spending the government says is "unsustainable". | If nothing changes, the health and disability benefits bill is forecast to reach £70bn a year by the end of the decade, a level of spending the government says is "unsustainable". |
| The government is planning to put the welfare reforms in place by November 2026 and no one will lose out on benefits payments until that happens. | The government is planning to put the welfare reforms in place by November 2026 and no one will lose out on benefits payments until that happens. |
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