For immediate release

Rutherglen Constituency MSP, Clare Haughey has slammed the UK Labour Government’s announcement that disability payments are to be slashed, branding the move cruel and draconian. 

The UK Work and Pensions Secretary, Liz Kendall recently announced that the Westminster Government would slash Personal Independent Payments (PIP) by £5 billion per year by 2030.

PIP is paid to help cover the additional costs associated with living with a disability, and the move has led to widespread condemnation from charities. 

Citizens Advice Scotland has it is “very concerned” about the changes, saying they will lead to an “unacceptable” reduction in income, adding that “changing who is eligible for support, even as the cost-of-living keeps rising, would be cruel and wrong.”

 PIP has been replaced by Adult Disability Payment (ADP) in Scotland.  However, changes to public spending south of the border can have a significant knock-on effect to the Scottish Budget, and the amount of funding available to Social Security Scotland who administer ADP.

Commenting, Clare Haughey added:

“During the election, Anas Sarwar promised voters that the Labour Party wouldn’t impose austerity cuts, and he pledged to top up disability benefits, prioritise mental health support and champion the rights of disabled people.

“Yet within months of a UK Labour Government getting into power they slashed pensioners’ winter fuel payment, energy bills have soared, they have blocked compensation for WASPI women, and are now imposing billions of pounds worth of cuts to disability benefits.

“This decision will be a hammer-blow to the hundreds of thousands of people who rely on social security support and will impact the funding available for Social Security in Scotland.

“Scottish Labour are trying to insist that the cuts ‘don’t amount to austerity’, but yet again, Labour have chosen to balance the books on the backs of the most vulnerable, pushing disabled people into poverty. “

ENDS