the country's only news agency specialising in disability issues
Disabled people were almost completely ignored by both main political parties at their annual conferences this month, analysis by Disability News Service has revealed*. In Manchester, only three of 21 Conservative ministers mentioned disabled people or disability in their main conference […]
The work and pensions secretary has sparked fresh concerns that a Conservative government would target the main disability benefit – personal independence payment (PIP) – for cuts and means-testing if it wins the next general election. Both Mel Stride and the […]
Disabled activists faced down police officers who tried to prevent them protesting in front of the four-star hotel where prime minister Rishi Sunak was staying during this week’s Conservative party conference in Manchester. Activists from Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC) gathered […]
The minister for disabled people has failed five times to say whether he was aware of research linking the “fitness for work” test with 590 suicides of disabled benefit claimants, as his department prepares to tighten the assessment even further. The […]
The minister for disabled people has refused three times to explain why his government failed to give evidence to the United Nations on its disability rights record, weeks after his party’s disability group expressed concern at the decision. The Conservative Disability […]
The Conservative party appears to be considering highly-controversial plans to means-test disability benefits as a way of cutting spending. Disability News Service (DNS) has been told that participants in focus groups have been asked questions about which people “deserve” various benefits […]
The Conservative and Labour parties have both refused to reveal their current policies on charging for adult social care, just days before local elections in England. Disability News Service (DNS) approached the four largest parties contesting next week’s elections – the […]
The government appears to be set to announce Corby MP Tom Pursglove as the fourth minister for disabled people in just 14 months. Although the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has not yet announced the portfolios of its latest set […]
The Conservative party has undermined its new minister for disabled people just days after her appointment, by refusing to back her promise that disability benefits will be uprated next year by the full rate of inflation. Claire Coutinho (pictured, above right) […]
For someone who still claims to be “backing Boris” on her own website, it may not be surprising that the new minister for disabled people, Claire Coutinho, is not yet up to speed on important aspects of her new post. Coutinho’s […]