Plans to cut benefits for disabled people could be scrapped amid Labour backlash

Last week it was widely reported that work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall was planning to freeze personal independent payment (PIP) as part of a swathe of welfare reforms.

A green paper will be set out by Ms Kendall on Tuesday with her proposed plans.

But on Sunday, health secretary Wes Streeting declined to be drawn on if she had changed her mind on freezing PIP,, following reports of a backlash among MPs.

Asked about the speculation on Sunday, Mr Streeting said he has not yet seen the full proposals, but is sure Ms Kendall “wants to support people who need help the most” and will “make sure that there is a wide range of support”.

He told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg: “I haven’t seen the proposals but you’ve seen the briefing, you’ve seen the speculation, I think the moral of the story is wait for the plans.”

During his interview, Mr Streeting also said he believes there is an “overdiagnosis” of mental health conditions leading to “too many people being written off” as unable to work.

Senior MPs including Ed Miliband and Angela Rayner are said to have spoken out about their concerns around the proposed freeze.

According to the York-based Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF), freezing PIP is “no answer to the nation’s health or employment prospects.”

Peter Matejic, Chief Analyst at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF), said: “If the government cuts benefits, this will only serve to deepen hardship. As we've demonstrated, cuts on this scale would be unprecedented. It is no answer to the nation’s health or employment prospects.

“If a disabled person needs financial support to be able to live and work, taking that support away or freezing it risks pushing them further away from a job. It is an unethical and short-sighted approach. 

“A government that came to office pledging to end the moral scar of foodbank use clearly should not be taking steps that could leave disabled people at greater risk of needing to use one. History shows us what happened when previous Prime Ministers oversaw huge cuts, this Prime Minister should reflect on that."

The JRF said the rumoured freeze would be the biggest cut to disability benefits since the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) was created in 2010.

PIP claimants receive up to £108.55 a week to help with daily living, and up to £75.75 to help with mobility.

Meanwhile, Ms Kendall is expected to attempt to reassure people receiving disability benefits by introducing a “right to try guarantee” that will allow them to take up work without necessarily losing their entitlements.

The move is said to be in response to surveys suggesting disabled people and those with long-term health conditions fear they will not get their benefits back if they try employment but it does not work out.

A Government source said: “The broken welfare system we inherited is trapping thousands of people in a life on benefits with no means of support, or any hope for a future of life in work.

“It doesn’t account for the reality of people’s health conditions, many of whom fear that they will be punished for taking a chance on work.

“As part of our plan for change, our reforms will deliver fairness and opportunity for disabled people, and those with long-term health conditions, protecting the welfare system so it is sustainable for the future and will always be there for those who need it.”