Boris Johnson is worried about the effect of the reforms to DLA
Boris Johnson turns his fire on the Government’s reforms to Disability Living Allowance
Living with a disability is expensive – for the disabled and the taxpayer
One of the Coalition government’s less well-covered reforms is that of the disability living allowance (DLA). The DLA is not an out-of-work benefit and it is not means tested: it’s payable to everyone with a disability, to help with the many extra financial costs that disabled people have to live with. Unfortunately, it’s also very expensive: since the early 1990s, the number of people claiming the allowance has tripled, to nearly 2.2 million. The Government believes too many people are claiming the benefit, so it is introducing stricter new tests, designed to save £1.4 billion by 2015.
This issue has been simmering away for a while, but on Monday, disability campaigners will score a hit. A Left-wing blog, Left Foot Forward, has the scoop here: the campaigners have got hold of the Government’s official consulation on the reform (so far unpublished) through some canny FOI requests, and they are publishing a report based on its findings. It’s likely to unsettle Iain Duncan Smith and the Government immensely. Here’s one reason why: it turns out that Boris Johnson has some serious issues with the reforms. Left Foot Forward has published the Mayor’s full official response here, but here’s a selection of the more damning paragraphs:
1) The Mayor is worried about the effect of the reforms, which propose extending the qualification period from three months to six months, on disabled people with terminal illnesses:
The three-month benefit qualification period should be retained, rather than extending this to six months as proposed, which will disadvantage certain disabled people. For example those diagnosed with a terminal illness would have to wait six months before they could access support.
2) He is concerned that the only aim is to save money, possibly at a high social cost:
While some reform may be necessary and some proposals are positive in terms of simplifying the benefit and reducing bureaucracy, the Mayor is concerned that if the focus of this reform is solely efficiency driven government, may fail to ensure that the needs of disabled people are adequately met and many will suffer additional hardship and isolation
3) He has problems with the new system of face-to-face assessments:
Face-to-face meetings with a healthcare professional could prove difficult and inappropriate for an individual who may have difficulty with social contacts such as those with autism, or for those with an intellectual or mental health disability.
The basic principle of reforming welfare seems unquestionable: the cost is spiralling, and there are undoubtedly problems with how it is allocated. But it is increasingly clear that there are problems with the details of the Government’s plans. This has been apparent ever since Ed Miliband pointed out in the House of Commons that recovering cancer patients are among those likely to lose out from the reforms. He was brushed off. But what will the Government tell Boris?
