The Budget shows the power of your voice

We welcome three announcements from this year’s Budget.  

First, that re-assessments for PIP awards will less frequent for people aged over 25 – usually three years for the first review, then every five years (and longer, as now, for people who are severely Disabled). 

Second, that they’ll be no wholesale withdrawal of tax relief from the Motability scheme, as originally rumoured (although there will be some unwelcome cost increases). 

These are huge wins for the disability sector. So, too, is the notable absence of any further cuts to disability-related benefits, beyond those to new claims for Universal Credit from next April, already announced.      

The DWP will also offer more face-to-face assessments in PIP and in the Work Capability Assessment for Universal Credit. Claimants can still request a telephone, video or paper-based assessment but this is not guaranteed. The option to choose is vital and we’ll be pushing for flexibility in the system. 

Third, the announcement that the notorious two-child benefit cap – a main driver of child poverty – will finally be scrapped. Again, this is a major win for all the organisations and individuals who have campaigned relentlessly on this issue.  

There is power in our collective action. We’ll continue to push the Government to make choices that give Disabled people a decent quality of life.  

Thumbnail image attribution: Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: HM Treasury.