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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
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| Sickness benefit shake-up considered | Sickness benefit shake-up considered |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Plans to scrap part of the UK's main sickness benefit are being considered, a leaked Whitehall paper suggests. | Plans to scrap part of the UK's main sickness benefit are being considered, a leaked Whitehall paper suggests. |
| It describes the Employment and Support Allowance as a "passive" benefit which does not "incentivise" people to find a job, and proposes abolishing the work-related activity group (WRAG) category. | It describes the Employment and Support Allowance as a "passive" benefit which does not "incentivise" people to find a job, and proposes abolishing the work-related activity group (WRAG) category. |
| If scrapped, weekly payments would drop nearly £30 from £102.15, bringing it in line with Jobseeker's Allowance. | If scrapped, weekly payments would drop nearly £30 from £102.15, bringing it in line with Jobseeker's Allowance. |
| The Department for Work and Pensions said it did not comment on leaks. | The Department for Work and Pensions said it did not comment on leaks. |
| The government is seeking to save £12bn from its welfare bill. | The government is seeking to save £12bn from its welfare bill. |
| It is expected next week's Budget will unveil only some of its proposed cuts, with others to be announced in the autumn spending review. | It is expected next week's Budget will unveil only some of its proposed cuts, with others to be announced in the autumn spending review. |
| How much is Employment and Support Allowance? | How much is Employment and Support Allowance? |
| Work-related activity group: Up to £102.15 a week | Work-related activity group: Up to £102.15 a week |
| Support group: Up to £109.30 a week | Support group: Up to £109.30 a week |
| And Jobseeker's Allowance? | And Jobseeker's Allowance? |
| Aged 18 to 24: Up to £57.90 a week | Aged 18 to 24: Up to £57.90 a week |
| Aged 25 or over: Up to £73.10 a week | Aged 25 or over: Up to £73.10 a week |
| Fit for work? | Fit for work? |
| The paper seen by BBC News was written by the Department for Work and Pensions before the general election in May. | The paper seen by BBC News was written by the Department for Work and Pensions before the general election in May. |
| It is marked "not government policy", but the BBC understands the proposals are still under consideration. | It is marked "not government policy", but the BBC understands the proposals are still under consideration. |
| About two million people in the UK receive the Employment and Support Allowance, in some form. | About two million people in the UK receive the Employment and Support Allowance, in some form. |
| It is paid out to disabled or sick people who are unable to work or need help getting back to work. | It is paid out to disabled or sick people who are unable to work or need help getting back to work. |
| Among them is Laura Berridge, who has suffered from arthritis for three years and says she needs the extra money because of the costs of her illness. | Among them is Laura Berridge, who has suffered from arthritis for three years and says she needs the extra money because of the costs of her illness. |
| "All of these small adaptations, the reliance on my car which is huge, the amount of petrol that I get through because I have to use my car - it's not something that I want to, I used to love walking, but I have to have my car now," she said. | "All of these small adaptations, the reliance on my car which is huge, the amount of petrol that I get through because I have to use my car - it's not something that I want to, I used to love walking, but I have to have my car now," she said. |
| "So, for me, it is entirely justified and to be quite honest, we couldn't cope without it." | "So, for me, it is entirely justified and to be quite honest, we couldn't cope without it." |
| Currently, people undergo a fit-for-work test to decide how their illness or disability affects their ability to work. | Currently, people undergo a fit-for-work test to decide how their illness or disability affects their ability to work. |
| If eligible for the benefit, they are placed in either the WRAG category, and must prepare for employment, or a support group category and are not expected to work. | If eligible for the benefit, they are placed in either the WRAG category, and must prepare for employment, or a support group category and are not expected to work. |
| Those who do not meet the criteria may be given Jobseeker's Allowance of up to £73.10 a week instead. | Those who do not meet the criteria may be given Jobseeker's Allowance of up to £73.10 a week instead. |
| The welfare budget in brief | The welfare budget in brief |
| Source: Institute for Fiscal Studies | Source: Institute for Fiscal Studies |
| Read more about where the welfare budget is spent | Read more about where the welfare budget is spent |
| 'Millions saved' | 'Millions saved' |
| The paper also proposes renaming the assessment tests "employment capability assessments", rather than work capability assessments, in order to focus attention on job-seeking, not benefit-seeking. | The paper also proposes renaming the assessment tests "employment capability assessments", rather than work capability assessments, in order to focus attention on job-seeking, not benefit-seeking. |
| It says removing the £30 top-up for WRAG claimants would give people less reason to worry that they were getting the "wrong" outcome from their assessment. | It says removing the £30 top-up for WRAG claimants would give people less reason to worry that they were getting the "wrong" outcome from their assessment. |
| The tests would identify claimants' strengths, rather than focus on what they could not do, and would be carried out much sooner in the application process, the paper says. | The tests would identify claimants' strengths, rather than focus on what they could not do, and would be carried out much sooner in the application process, the paper says. |
| Under the plans, the government could save hundreds of millions of pounds by the end of the decade, the paper says. | Under the plans, the government could save hundreds of millions of pounds by the end of the decade, the paper says. |
| Charlie Pickles from Reform, a think tank focusing on public service delivery that was co-founded by Conservative MP Nick Herbert, said the current system encourages people to stay on the benefit rather than finding work. | Charlie Pickles from Reform, a think tank focusing on public service delivery that was co-founded by Conservative MP Nick Herbert, said the current system encourages people to stay on the benefit rather than finding work. |
| "We have a huge gap between disabled people's employment rate and non-disabled people's employment rate and if you are building in perverse incentives, within a benefit system, then you are encouraging people to move onto that benefit," he said. | "We have a huge gap between disabled people's employment rate and non-disabled people's employment rate and if you are building in perverse incentives, within a benefit system, then you are encouraging people to move onto that benefit," he said. |
| Ministers are also understood to be considering changes to the support group category of the Employment and Support Allowance, with a possible announcement in the 8 July Budget. | Ministers are also understood to be considering changes to the support group category of the Employment and Support Allowance, with a possible announcement in the 8 July Budget. |
| A spokesman for the Department of Work and Pensions said: "This is speculation based on documents leaked before the election. We do not comment on leaked documents." | A spokesman for the Department of Work and Pensions said: "This is speculation based on documents leaked before the election. We do not comment on leaked documents." |