'I receive PIP - Labour's reforms are targeting mentally ill people' (2025)

Welfare recipients have accused Labour of “targeting people with mental health conditions” in the way they are cutting benefits, telling The i Paper they are “petrified” by the reforms.

In March, the Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall unveiled stricter eligibility rules for personal independence payments (PIP) as part of Labour’s plans to reduce the welfare bill by £6bn amid the perilous state of the public purse.

The reforms are expected to make it harder for those with mental illnesses and less severe disabilities to receive the benefit, which is designed to support claimants with their daily activities and transportation.

Sir Keir Starmer has said the changes will “protect the most severely disabled people” while ensuring that “millions of people – especially young people – who have potential to work” do not become trapped in the welfare system.

However, PIP claimants have told The i Paper the benefit allows them to stay in work and warned taking it away could push them into “poverty and unemployment”.

“PIP helps keep me in work, which then means I pay taxes, I’m contributing to society and keeping my mental health under control,” said James Withey, 52, from Brighton.

Mr Withey, a part-time librarian and mental health advocate, told The i Paper he suffers from major depressive disorder, anxiety and PTSD stemming from abuse he sustained as a child.

He said: “PIP is not an out-of-work benefit – it’s about independence and levelling up what your disability takes away.

“I worked full-time for years and then just got too ill and couldn’t do it, but I still wanted to do something to contribute.”

PIP is a benefit which helps cover extra living costs if you have a long-term physical or mental health condition or find it hard doing everyday tasks or struggle with mobility.

Mr Withey explained that PIP allows him to do part-time work while managing his mental health conditions without being pushed into poverty.

He added: “I’m on quite a lot of medication. It pays for my medication.

“A big part of PIP is that you can get a disabled persons railcard, so that cuts down on my travel expenses, including my travel to work.

“Mental illness, depression and anxiety for me are so severe that I need benefits to be part of society and have some pride, contribute and have meaningful work.

“That enables me to keep my mental health under control, so I’m also using less NHS resources.”

PIP applicants are given points based on the difficulty they face with mobility and performing everyday tasks, such as preparing food and bathing.

How is Labour reforming the welfare system?

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall set out sweeping welfare reforms in March, claiming they would save more than £5bn in 2029-30.

The number of PIP claimants is expected to rise from 2.7 million to 4.2 million by 2029-30, according to the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), taking the bill from £18bn to £34bn.

The main aim of the reforms is to bring down the spiralling cost of long-term sickness and disability benefitsfor working-age people.

A week after Kendall’s announcement, Rachel Reeves unveiled cuts to universal credit (UC) in her Spring Statement.

The reforms will primarily affect universal credit and PIP.

Universal credit (UC)

Reeves announced theuniversal credit incapacity benefit for new claimants will be reduced and frozen until 2030 rather than increased in line with inflation.

There will also be a small reduction in the standard universal credit rate in 2029 after Kendall announced a weekly increase of £7 from April 2026.

Currently, a single person on universal credit deemed fit to work receives £311.68 if they are under 25 or £393.45 a month if they are older than 25.

Those who have a limited capability for work get an extra £416.19 a month on top of that.

Current claimants will see this top-up payment frozen at £97 a week until 2029-30. For new claims, this rate will be reduced to £50 a week – and then frozen at that level.

The Government said it will also consult on delaying access to the universal credit health element until someone is aged 22, with around 66,000 18- to 21-year-olds currently claiming the benefit.

Personal independence payments (PIP)

Kendall confirmed the Government will tighten the eligibility rules for PIP, so it would “focus support on those with the greatest needs”.

The daily living component of PIP has 10 categories, covering everything from the ability to prepare food to making decisions about money.

The mobility component, focused on the claimant’s ability to get around, has two categories.

Under current rules, claimantsreceive the standard rate of PIP if they score between eight and 11 points across all categories on either component.

Scores over 12 receive the enhanced rate. Annual payments for PIP can vary from £1,500 to £9,600.

Under Labour’s reforms, claimants will be required to score at least four points in one category before they are eligible for PIP from November 2026 onwards.

This change is expected to mean that certain mental health conditions and less severe physical conditions may no longer be eligible for PIP.

Read more about the changes here.

The points range from zero to 12, with those facing more difficulty scoring higher on the scale for each activity.

Under the proposed reforms, applicants will be required to score a minimum of four points on at least one activity to qualify for the daily living component of PIP.

“It feels like, with these proposals, the Government is targeting people with mental illnesses because they know those of us who claim [PIP] will not score four across one category,” Mr Withey said.

“It feels like a direct kick in the teeth for people with mental illness because of how they are structuring the award system. People like me are petrified.

“The prospect of cuts has had a big impact on my mental health, worrying about finances and my job as well as feeling ignored by the Government and not understood.

“It all exacerbates my depression and anxiety and I know it does with others, too.”

A Department for Work and Pensions spokesperson said: “We will never compromise on protecting people who need our support.

“The social security system will continue to support those with severe health conditions, who will never be able to work, by protecting their income.

“There has been no immediate change to the PIP assessment process. We are currently consulting on how best to ensure those impacted by the changes – when they come into force – continue to receive the support they need.”

Kathy Bole, chair of Disability Labour, a national committee representing registered members of the party with disabilities and their families, told The i Paper her organisation has taken a stand against the reforms.

“I’m vocally against it,” she said. “We’ve taken a stand in Disability Labour that we disagree with this – they need to stop it, rethink it and get together with the people who actually know what’s going on to fix the problems.”

Ms Bole, who claims PIP due to her fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue, described the benefits cuts as a form of “coercive control”.

“If they did this to any other protected group, there would be uproar,” she said. “But it seems that people don’t care about disabled people.

“This is how I look at it: everybody on this planet is one illness or accident away from being a disabled person.

“People age into disability – your hips go, your knees go, you get arthritis. Any of those things can make it so that you can’t work.

“People don’t see that – I guess it’s because it’s not happening to them.”

Benefits reforms ‘more urgent’ due to Trump turmoil, Kendall says

The economic fallout from Donald Trump’s tariffsmake work and welfare reforms even more urgent,Kendalltold The i Paper.

She said the UK “needs” people to be in employment to succeed, arguing that a push to help people with health conditions into work was crucial to this.

She has not ruled out further benefits cuts in the future if Rachel Reeves is forced to make more savings – and she would not say whether the Chancellor had warned that Government department budgets could be squeezed further due to economic turbulence.

However, Kendall reiterated a promise made by Starmer that the most vulnerable sick and disabled people would be protected.

She pointed toinvestment in employment servicesas being key to making welfare spending “sustainable”.

Under Trump’s new trade policy, UK exporters face a 10 per cent tariff on goods they sell to the US.

“Everyone’s concerned about what’s happening in the global economy and we are disappointed with the tariffs that have been set,” Kendall said.

“We are working extremely hard to get a deal that’s good for Britain and in our national interest [and] working closely with employers in the sectors that are affected.”

Read more about Kendall’s comments, shared with The i Paper‘s Senior Political Correspondent Chloe Chaplain, here.

Ms Bole, who uses an electric wheelchair due to her limited mobility, warned that PIP claimants’ mental health conditions may be exacerbated by the prospect of having their benefits cut, even before the policy is enacted.

Jeremy Bernhaut, associate director for policy and practice at Rethink Mental Illness, said: “PIP can be a lifeline for people experiencing mental illness. Many rely on it to stay in employment or avoid falling into crisis.

“Alongside helping cover the extra daily living costs associated with mental illness, many use PIP to pay for therapy or medicines privately that they can’t access through under-resourced NHS services.

“We’re deeply concerned that the government’s plans to tighten disability benefits will plunge many into poverty and worsen mental health.

“Our Set Up to Fail report found the benefits system is already deeply flawed. Assessments are often carried out by professionals with little understanding of mental illness. Processes are confusing and overwhelming, placing an unfair burden on people experiencing mental illness.

“And sanctions and mandatory work activities push people into work before they are ready, risking their financial security and health.

“Even people who were able and ready to work told us that the right support wasn’t available. They described many work coaches as coercive, focusing on ticking boxes instead of meaningful support, and with their preferences, skills and goals frequently dismissed.

“Rather than closing doors for people living with mental illness, the Government should be fixing a system which is already causing serious harm.

“We need a compassionate benefits system that protects people and, if they’re well enough, helps them move into work that’s right for them, rather than punishing and penalising them.”

For confidential advice and support, the Samaritans are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Call for free on 116 123 or visit samaritans.org.

Alternatively, you can call MIND on 0300 102 1234.