Charities protest over new disability benefit

Controversial new disability benefits will start being rolled out across Scotland. The PIP (Personal Independence Payment) will replace the Disability Living Allowance (DLA) for working-age claimants.

UK minister for disabled people Esther McVey claims the DLA is outdated and does not properly monitor changes in a claimant’s condition.

Under the new system, recipients will have to undergo regular reassessments to ensure they are not fit for work — something 71% of DLA claimants were not subjected to.

However, one of the companies responsible for carrying out these tests, ATOS, has been heavily criticised for the way it has carried out assessments to judge if a person should remain on disability benefits or is able to work and should be switched to unemployment benefits.

Critics of PIP say the criteria for awarding the benefit are too narrow and that nearly 600,000 people across the UK will be left out of pocket as a result.

North of the border, Capability Scotland estimates that the entire package of welfare reforms will mean disabled people in Scotland will lose out on a total of £2.5 billion in welfare income by 2015.

Charity Disability Right UK has voiced fears that the introduction of PIP and the “bedroom tax”, with cuts in in social care support from some local authorities, will have a major detrimental impact on the quality of life of many disabled people.

But Esther McVey, Minister for Disabled People said: “The Personal Independence Payment has been designed to better reflect today’s understanding of disability, particularly to update our thinking on mental health and fluctuating conditions.”

She said the regular reviews will “give more targeted support to those who need it most”.

However, most current DLA claimants will not be assessed until at least 2015.