Scores of disabled people and welfare advisers have told a Commons inquiry that disability benefit assessment reports completed on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions are filled with “lies and misinformation”. The work and pensions select committee is carrying […]
Debbie Abrahams
PIP investigation: Assessment complaints rise by 880 per cent… in just one year
Complaints about the personal independence payment (PIP) assessment process rose by nearly 900 per cent last year – from 142 to 1,391 – apparently corroborating the results of a year-long Disability News Service investigation. The Department for Work and Pensions figures […]
Disabled MP’s offensive remarks ‘should end his political career’
A series of offensive remarks made by a disabled MP about other minority groups and women should end his political career, according to members of a disabled women’s collective. Sisters of Frida was among disabled groups and activists who spoke to […]
Labour conference: Benefit assessment nurses must be held to account, says Abrahams
Labour’s shadow work and pensions secretary has called for nurses and other healthcare professionals who write misleading benefit assessment reports to be “held to account”. Debbie Abrahams said there had been “too many times” when healthcare professionals had written reports that […]
Labour conference: Shock and outrage over Field’s minimum wage comments
Disabled party activists have expressed shock and outrage after the Labour chair of the Commons work and pensions committee suggested that employers should be allowed to pay some disabled people less than the minimum wage. Among the critics were two disabled […]
Labour conference: Vote means party must rethink approach to social security cuts
A shadow cabinet member has supported calls by party members for Labour to come up with a stronger policy on reversing government cuts to social security spending. Debbie Abrahams spoke out after Labour’s annual conference in Brighton voted overwhelmingly to ask […]
Labour conference: Abrahams pledges ‘supportive and enabling’ social security system
Labour’s shadow work and pensions secretary has pledged to transform the social security system from one that “demonises” benefit claimants to one that is “supportive and enabling”. Debbie Abrahams told Labour’s annual conference in Brighton that the social security system was […]
UK is going backwards on independent living, says UN committee
A UN committee has told the UK government to make more than 80 improvements to the ways its laws and policies affect disabled people’s human rights. In its “concluding observations” on the progress the UK has made in implementing the UN […]
Labour pledges ‘transformation’ of social security as it fleshes out disability policies
Labour has pledged to “transform” the social security system and to set out a bill to repeal cuts to disabled people’s benefits within a year, in one of the headline measures of a mini-manifesto devoted solely to disability issues. The document, […]
Election 2017: Labour’s rights pledges suggest vindication for Abrahams
Labour’s general election manifesto includes a string of policies aimed at improving the rights of disabled people, including a commitment to incorporate the UN disability convention into UK law for the first time. The manifesto appears to be a vindication of […]