Citizen’s Advice ‘deeply concerned’ about changes to health and disability benefits

The announcements by the Department of Work and Pensions, backed up by Chancellor Rachel Reeves in her Spring Statement, have been made in a partial money-saving move, also billed as a means of reforming the welfare system to support and enable more people who have been on long term sickness and disability benefits to get into work.

The three proposed changes Citizens Advice Mid Lincolnshire are most concerned about are: the tightening of Personal Independence Payments eligibility making it harder to qualify for the daily living element; cuts to the Universal Credit health element and using PIP daily living as the sole gateway to UC health

Louise Buckingham, Chief Executive Officer of Citizens Advice Mid Lincolnshire commented: “Not only will these cuts force many disabled people into poverty and hardship. They will also not achieve their stated aim of encouraging disabled people into employment. They will also negatively impact on other government objectives - such as reducing child poverty - with almost a third of the people we help with Personal Independent Payment having dependent children.”

She said: “The number of disabled people who are reliant on charitable support to make ends meet remains worryingly high and will likely increase as a result of these cuts.”

Ms Buckingham called for a benefits system focused on fixing problems, that’s there for people when they need it unexpectedly. She added: “The system must be about prevention. There is an urgent need for the benefits system and the health service to complement each other.”

She insisted the government must run a full consultation process on all proposed changes to health and disability benefits; protect the most vulnerable by scrapping proposals to cut disability benefits;

At Citizens Advice Mid Lincolnshire their advisers have helped 196 people with charitable support and food bank referrals between January and March 2025. Fifty-six per cent of these people were disabled or had a long-term health condition.

Ms Buckingham said: “During 2024 we helped nearly 1,500 people with disability and incapacity benefits issues.

“The disabled people we help with debt are more likely to be in a negative budget if they don’t receive PIP (a negative budget is where your monthly income isn’t enough to cover your essential costs).”

Work and Pensions Secretary, Liz Kendall said on the changes: “We inherited a broken welfare system that is failing sick and disabled people, is bad for the taxpayer, and holding the economy back.

“For too long, sick, and disabled people have been told they can’t work, denied support, and locked out of jobs, with all the benefits that good work brings.

“But many sick and disabled people want and can work, with the right support. And we know that good work is good for people – for their living standards, for their mental and physical health, and for their ability to live independently.

“We’re determined to fix the broken benefits system as part of our Plan for Change by reforming the welfare system and delivering proper support to help people get into work and get on at work, so we can get Britain working and deliver our ambition of an 80 per cent employment rate.”