We are coming together as organisations committed to fighting poverty, providing advice, and supporting and championing the rights of disabled people, their families, and carers.
We stand firmly with disabled people and their organisations in calling for the UK government to withdraw the UC & PIP Bill and to undertake genuine dialogue with disabled people to shape reforms centred on the rights and dignity that all disabled people need and deserve.
At a time when the share of GDP spent on working-age social security has remained stable for the last ten years, cutting the incomes of disabled people is a political choice. There is time for the government to pursue alternatives.
If this Bill is voted through, then by 2030 it will have cut PIP for more than 400,000 disabled people and Universal Credit for more than 700,000 people who are disabled or have a long-term health condition.
These numbers will only increase in the years to follow.
This Bill has also been brought before parliament:
• Without consultation with disabled people
• Without any assessment of its impact on health and employment outcomes
• Before the planned review of the PIP assessment has properly begun its work
• Without knowing how the outcome of the PIP review may affect these reforms
The changes announced last week and the compressed timetable for scrutiny mean that MPs will only have a single day to debate or amend the new provisions.
There is too much at stake for disabled people for this Bill to be rushed through without the opportunity for meaningful challenge or scrutiny.
We urge all MPs to vote against this Bill at Second Reading.
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Action for Children
Amnesty International
British Association of Social Workers
Camphill Village Trust Centre for Mental Health
Child Poverty Action Group
Children & Young People's Mental Health Coalition
Children First
Citizens Advice
Community Money Advice
Crisis
Cystic Fibrosis Trust
Debt Justice
Diabetes UK
Disability Benefits Consortium
Disability Law Service
Disabled People Against Cuts
End Child Poverty Coalition
Endometriosis UK
Engender
Fuel Poverty Action
Home Start
Human Rights Watch
Huntington's Disease Association
Imagine Act and Succeed
In Kind Direct
Independent Age
Independent Food Aid Network
Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Kidney Care
Learning Disability Allies
Leonard Cheshire
ME Foggy Dog
Mental Health Foundation
Mental Health UK
Mind
Money and Mental Health Policy Institute
MS Society
National Autistic Society
National Children's Bureau
National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society
National Survivor User Network
Neuroendocrine Cancer UK
New Economics Foundation
Oxfam
Parkinson's UK
Quaker Social Action
Rethink Mental Illness
Royal National Institute of Blind People
Royal National Institute of Deaf People
SeeAbility
Scope
Sense
Shelter
Sisters of Frida
St Mungo's
Stripy Lightbulb CIC
The Children's Society
The Food Foundation
The Poverty Alliance
The Salvation Army
Trussell
Turn2Us
Turning Point
Versus Arthritis
Voluntary Organisations Disability Group
We Care Campaign
Whizz Kidz
Women's Budget Group
Young Lives vs Cancer
Z2K
4 in 10
Black Country Foodbank
Citizens Advice Scotland
Close the Gap
Food Plymouth
Hartlepool Foodbank
Includem
North East Child Poverty Commission
One Parent Families Scotland
Parenting Across Scotland
Scottish Women's Budget Group
Shelter Scotland
Stay Safe East
The Scottish Pantry Network