The Impact of the Benefits’ Cuts on Claimants ’Mental Health

Sylvie Rouhani Deputy Editor, Taxpayers Against Poverty 3 May 2025

After more than 14 years of austerity aimed at disabled UK citizens, on the 18th March 2025, Rt Hon, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Liz Kendall, confirmed the much dreaded cuts and changes to disability benefits.

The Benefit Cuts Include:

·       Personal Independent Payment (PIP) claimants will need to score 4 points, instead of 2 points in at least one category, to be eligible. If they aren’t awarded PIP, claimants will have to look for work.

·       Work Capability Assessment (WCA) will be scrapped which means no more extra financial support for claimants, even those already claiming UC and PIP.

·       “UC Health Element” (Limited Capability of Work Related Activity/ LCWRA) will be frozen until 2029/30 and will be halved (from £97pw to £47pw) for new claimants by 2026.

·       Young adults, under 22 years of age, no will no longer be able to receive the “UC Health Element” (LWCRA,) even if they already receive PIP. They will be encouraged to train or to seek further education or gain employment.

·       “Support conversations” instead of WCA. Claimants will be invited to regular appointments for “support conversations” with a trained individual. The focus on what the claimant can do and, on their career goals, with the promise of flexibility in terms of timing, format and frequency. Consultations are ongoing on whether these appointments should be obligatory for individuals receiving the UC Health Element, and if sanctions would need to be applied.

Many organisations, such as Taxpayers Against Poverty (TAP )and Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC), are warning those changes will push claimants into further poverty and mental distress.

Disabled People Against Cut (DPAC) explains: “If the cuts to PIP are taken together with the Government’s proposals to scrap the Work Capability Assessment and replace current out of work disability benefits with a new “health” component of Universal Credit with eligibility tied to PIP, some claimants risk losing £9600 per year.” And “Cutting disability benefits will push more households into poverty. Reports we are hearing say the cuts to be announced will impact a million Disabled people. The charities fear that 700,000 additional households containing a Disabled person will be pushed into poverty as a result of these cuts.”

The Impact of the Benefits Cuts on Claimant’s Mental Health:

This news is complex and confusing to understand for many. They also are fear and shame inducing. The tragic deaths of Errol Graham, Jodey Whiting and David Clapson are tragic examples of austerity campaigns against ill and disabled people.

“I was born with a type of muscular dystrophy/ myopathy,”45 years old, Borough of Lewisham resident, Sue*, from Lewisham, explains. “It is a genetic muscle wasting illness. It restricts my movements and my energy levels. My knees and legs get weak,” wobbly” and tired very quickly, so walking is difficult, so is standing, carrying shopping and other daily chores. It affects my arms too: I can’t lift them above my head. I can’t carry lots of shopping bags and small things, such as drying my hair are hard. I walk with a stick as I am prone to falls. There are no cures and no treatments, apart from managing pain, discomfort and exhaustion. My condition has been getting worse for the last 5 years. The WCA for ESA and the PIP reviews are degrading. I have a chronic illness but, still, I need to prove and explain it to assessors I have never met before, and in great details as if I am lying and pretending to be sick. I also have chronic mental health illnesses, but that doesn’t seem to matter.”

Sophia* explains the demeaning process of the face-to-face PIP reviews: “It starts in the lobby, waiting to be assessed, as you can feel staff watching your every move. The assessors presented themselves as polite but, I felt like I was talking to robots. There was no sensitivity and real understanding of my conditions.” She adds: “Then they switched to phone assessments and, somehow, it feels wrong to talk to someone I have never met. I get easily confused. The repetitive and hypothetical questions are anxiety inducing. I find it hard to express myself. I can never understand why I have to answer to all these questions when I have already filled in a lengthy PIP assessment form prior the interview. Then I am lucky if I get any points for any categories. The entire processes is soul destroying.”

Mike, 50 years old, living in SE London, has been unemployed for 9 years now, as a result of chronic and debilitating mental illness (borderline personality disorder/ BPD), high anxiety and anger management issues, in interpersonal relationships, said: “Since the news of the upcoming cuts, I have been feeling increasingly anxious and suicidal. I f I lose my PIP; I will become homeless. What the Labour Party is planning is demeaning and unjustifiable.”

A call for change

“Demeaning, humiliating, unjustifiable, soul destroying” With the drastic cuts to the benefit system, thousands of sick and poor UK citizens’ quality of life will further diminish, pushing them into further poverty and making them sicker than they already are.

Taxpayers Against Poverty calls for a fairer and more compassionate society, where all are cared for.

* Name changed for anonymity

Our Role in Creating Change

We cannot wait for someone else to act. It’s time to demand better for the millions struggling in poverty—and for the millions more living one unexpected expense away from it.

·       Join us in advocating for a compassionate, fairer society. Here’s how you can help:

·       Speak Up: Contact your MP and demand investment in social care, living wages, and affordable housing.

·       Get Involved: Volunteer or donate to organisations like TAP that fight for systemic change.

·       Stay Informed: Follow TAP’s work and share their message to build awareness.

Together, we can create a society where no one is left behind. Let’s make compassion the cornerstone of our nation’s future.

Sylvie Rouhani Deputy Editor, Taxpayers Against Poverty

3 May 2025