DWP launches online consultation on proposed changes to disability benefits and employment support
The ‘Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working’ consultation is open until June 30, 2025.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has published the ‘Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working’ consultation online at GOV.UK. The consultation is seeking views on the approaches the UK Government should consider around reform of the health and disability benefits system and employment support.
Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall announced several key changes planned for Personal Independence Payment (PIP), Universal Credit and the Work Capability Assessment in Parliament on Tuesday.
The consultation on GOV.UK states: “This Green Paper is an important staging post on a journey of reform, building on the vision and approach set out in the Get Britain Working White Paper in November 2024. It sets out our vision, strategy and proposals for change.”
READ MORE: Martin Lewis warns many people on PIP at risk of losing ‘vital support’ under new DWP proposalsREAD MORE: How to protect your PIP payments from DWP changes due to be introduced next yearIt continues: “We want to improve and refine our plans by consulting on certain measures as described within this paper. We are committed to putting the views and voices of disabled people and people with health conditions at the heart of everything we do.”
Who can complete the consultation?
The DWP is encouraging a “wide group” of people to share their views “in particular disabled people and people with health conditions and disability organisations”.
This consultation applies to England, Wales and Scotland. All the proposals apply in England, but it’s important to be aware that the proposals will only apply to the UK Government’s areas of responsibility in England, Wales and Scotland.
DWP will also be running a number of ‘accessible virtual and face to face events’ on the consultation. More information on the details of these events and on how to register will be posted on the consultation page in due course - full entails here.
To complete the consultation, scroll to the bottom of the page here where it says ‘Ways to respond’.
Latest Benefits News
Summary of proposed benefits changes
Universal Credit
The latest statistics show there were 7.57 million people on Universal Credit, a means-tested incapacity benefit, in Great Britain as of February. It is aimed at helping people on a low income or those who are out of work.
The UKGovernment said it will introduce an above-inflation rise to the standard Universal Credit allowance by 2029/30 - adding £775 in cash terms annually. But the health element allowance will be almost halved for new claimants from April next year while those already claiming will have their amount frozen until 2029/2030.
The Work Capability Assessment (WCA) is to be scrapped in 2028, having been described by Liz Kendall as “complex, time consuming and often stressful for claimants”.
The UK Government said it will legislate for a so-called “right to try”, which will allow people to try work without the fear their benefits will automatically be put at risk.
The Government said it will consult on delaying access to the Universal Credit health element until someone is aged 22. The latest figures showed there were 109,436 people aged 16 to 21 on Universal Credit health in December 2024.
PIP and ADP News
PIP
Nearly 3.7 million claimants in England and Wales were entitled to PIP as of the end of January, the latest figures showed - up 71 per cent on the equivalent figure five years earlier when it stood at 2.14 million.
The payment is aimed at helping with some of the extra costs caused by long-term disability and ill health and is not dependent on whether someone is working or not.
Some people will lose their PIP entitlement, the UK Government said, as the process to qualify is tightened in an effort to focus the disability benefit on “those with higher needs”.
The UK Government said it will bring in a new eligibility requirement for a minimum score of at least four points regarding how much help the person needs with everyday tasks on the daily living element of the benefit.
No change is being proposed for the mobility element, which looks at how much help someone needs in getting around.
The UK Government confirmed the change “means that people who only score the lowest points on each of the PIP daily living activities will lose their entitlement in future”.
The UK Government also committed to not putting Universal Credit claimants who have the most severe disabilities and health conditions that will never improve through the ordeal of being reassessed for benefits “to give them the confidence and dignity they deserve”.
However the UK Government said it plans to increase the number of face-to-face assessments in PIP and under the current Work Capability Assessment in a bid to “give confidence to claimants and taxpayers that they’re being done properly”.
The UK Government said it will also consult on raising the age at which people can claim PIP from 16 to 18.