Blair backs down over incapacity benefit - At last!

http://news.scotsman.com/politics.cfm?id=11982006

Blair backs down over incapacity benefit

JAMES KIRKUP WESTMINSTER EDITOR

THE government backed away from radical plans to reform incapacity benefit yesterday, signalling that there will be no attempt to cut the £8 billion bill for the welfare payments.
Labour MPs had threatened a rebellion after suggestions from Downing Street of a move to reduce the total amount of money paid to the 2.7 million incapacity benefit claimants.

But ministers yesterday said there was no longer any question of cutting payments made to claimants. Suggestions that time limits or means tests could be placed on the benefit are also set to be dropped.

Instead, new plans to cut the incapacity benefit lists are expected to focus on expanding pilot projects that effectively pay claimants more money as an incentive to leave the welfare system and get a job.

The so-called Pathways to Work programme penalises claimants who do not attend employment-based interviews with officials, but it also offers an extra £40-a-week payment to those who get jobs.

John Hutton, the Work and Pensions Secretary, said there was no question of imposing big cuts in the incapacity benefits paid to existing claimants. "I did not come into politics to make poor people poorer," he said.

Mr Hutton has written to the 100 MPs whose constituencies have the most incapacity benefit claimants, reassuring them about the government's plans.

An official spokesman for Tony Blair, the Prime Minister, also suggested that there was no longer any target of cutting the overall incapacity benefit bill, although falling numbers of claimants would reduce costs eventually.

"The primary purpose is to get people back to work," the spokesman said. "Given the demographics, that in itself is right for the economy."

Three of the ten constituencies with the most claimants are in Glasgow. Glasgow East tops the list with 11,300 people claiming incapacity benefits.

Ian Davidson, the Labour MP whose Glasgow South West seat comes 13th in the list with 8,600 claimants, said he was satisfied the government had backed down from its initial plans for widespread cuts in payments. "We want to make sure that this is not a means of saving money for the Treasury, nor a means of punishing those who are in difficulties," he said.

This article: http://news.scotsman.com/politics.cfm?id=11982006
Last updated: 04-Jan-06 01:12 GMT