DWP change to WCA rule could mean 400,000 people 'lose benefits'

A DWP rule change will see 400,000 people lose benefits as Rachel Reeves plots £3bn in cuts.

A Department for Work and Pensions rule change could see as many as THOUSANDS lose money in a brutal blow under the new Labour Party government. A DWP rule change will see 400,000 people lose benefits as Rachel Reeves plots £3bn in cuts.

Those in receipt of PIP and other DWP sickness benefits face losing their payments under Ms Reeves's proposal. The Labour Party MP is set to implement £3billion in benefit cuts over the next four years by tightening access to sickness benefits.

The Labour plan to reform the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) shows an estimated 400,000 more individuals currently on long-term sick leave would be reassessed as needing to prepare for employment by 2028/29.

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A government spokesperson stated: "We have always said that the Work Capability Assessment is not working and needs to be reformed or replaced alongside a proper plan to support disabled people to work.

"We will deliver savings through our own reforms, including genuine support to help disabled people into work." The leading independent thinktank, the Resolution Foundation, has called on the chancellor to drop or delay changes to WCA.

They argue that key aspects of the policy have not been thought through, and that around 420,000 people who are unable to work through disability or ill-health could lose up to £4,900 a year. Mike Brewer, interim chief executive of the Resolution Foundation, said the plan should be scrapped or at least rethought.

He said: “These changes disproportionately affect lower-income households, and could lead to individuals missing out on support, in spite of being at substantial risk of harm, opening up the government to legal challenges.

“Ministers are right to scrutinise fast-rising disability benefit spending. But these changes have not been thought through properly. They should be delayed – if not cancelled – until they are.”