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Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Liz Kendall has dismissed suggestions that the planned reforms to disability benefits will cause 3.2 million families to face cuts.
Liberal Democrat work and pensions spokesperson Steve Darling challenged the UK Government over the “economic impact” of its alterations to Personal Independence Payment (PIP), informing MPs on Monday about the potential loss of PIP for over 3,000 individuals in his constituency after the planned adjustments from November 2026 roll out.
Highlighting the broader implications, the Torbay MP stated: “When one looks at other elements of the Green Paper across the country, 3.2 million families are set to lose out under this Green Paper, often those that benefit are from the most deprived communities in the United Kingdom.”
In response, Ms Kendall countered: “The figures that he has are the number of people right now who may have less than four points on PIP, but I would say to him, these changes are not coming in overnight, they wouldn’t be implemented until November next year. And many people’s health conditions change, so it is not right to say that those are the exact numbers who would lose out.”
Adding his concerns, Conservative MP Sir Roger Gale (Herne Bay and Sandwich) mentioned the difficulty with invisible disabilities, urging: “Will the minister assure me that she will take the utmost care and sensitivity before taking any further decisions?”.
To which Ms Kendall reassured: “I can absolutely assure (Sir Roger) that we will make these changes carefully.”, reports the Daily Record.
Last week, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) signalled that upcoming changes to Personal Independence Payment (PIP) will bolster vital financial aid for two specific groups of claimants. Sir Stephen Timms, Minister for Social Security and Disability, highlighted that PIP will concentrate on “those with the greatest needs, who are unable to complete activities at all, or who require more help from others to complete them”.
Yet, he cautioned that due to an eligibility amendment slated for next November – necessitating a minimum score of four points in one of the 10 daily living activities for PIP qualification – “people with lower needs” could forfeit monthly sums of either £295.60 or £441.60. The DWP Minister’s remarks were part of a written reply to Labour MP Noah Law, who queried whether the Department would “make an assessment of the potential merits of allowing people who accumulate points across multiple Personal Independence Payment activities, but do not score four points in any single activity, to retain their entitlement”.
In response, Sir Stephen stated: “PIP is an important, non-means tested benefit for disabled people and people with health conditions – regardless of whether they are in or out of work.
“However, the rate of increases in claims and expenditure is not sustainable and has outstripped the growth in disability prevalence. Changes are needed that will control the spend on the welfare bill, while continuing to support those people with higher needs relating to their long-term health condition or disability.”
He added: “In our Pathways to Work Green Paper we announced that we will introduce a new eligibility requirement to ensure that only those who score a minimum of four points in at least one daily living activity will be eligible for the daily living component of PIP. This requirement will need to be met in addition to the existing PIP eligibility criteria.
“This will focus PIP more on those with the greatest needs, who are unable to complete activities at all, or who require more help from others to complete them. This means that people who have lower needs only in the daily living activities (scoring three or less for each activity) will no longer be eligible for the daily living component of PIP.”
Sir Stephen remarked: “Our intention is that this change will apply to new claims and award reviews from November 2026, subject to parliamentary approval.”
The DWP believes that proposed eligibility rule tweaks to the daily living component of PIP could see 370,000 current beneficiaries stripped of their entitlement as their awards come up for review in the financial year 2029/30.
An impact assessment published in March reveals that an estimated 430,000 future PIP claimants will not qualify for the disability benefit once reforms are implemented, resulting in an average annual loss of £4,500 each.
The DWP has carried out an analysis of PIP claimants who did not score four points in at least one daily living activity across 18 of the most prevalent disabling conditions. These conditions were selected as they constitute the largest proportions of PIP caseloads.
DWP’s analysis of current daily living awards
According to the DWP’s notes on the analysis, the health condition category is based on the primary health condition as recorded on the PIP Computer System at the time of the latest assessment. While many claimants have multiple health conditions, only the primary condition is available for analysis.
The list below outlines PIP health conditions, the number of comments in receipt of PIP daily living component and the number of claimants awarded less than four points in all daily living activities as of the end of January 2025.
Arthritis – 279,000 claimants, with 13,000 (6%) scoring less than 4 points.
Other Regional Musculoskeletal Diseases – 136,000 claimants, with 97,000 (71%) scoring less than 4 points.
Chronic Pain Syndromes – 173,00 claimants, with 97,000 (71%) scoring less than 4 points.
Cardiovascular Diseases – 61,000 claimants, with 38,000 (62%) scoring less than 4 points.
Respiratory Diseases – 83,000 claimants, with 45,000 (55%) scoring less than 4 points.
Multiple Sclerosis and Neuropathic Diseases have 80,000 claimants, with 38,000 (48%) scoring less than 4 points.
All Other Conditions have 272,000 claimants, with 126,000 (46%) scoring less than 4 points.
Other Neurological Diseases have 97,000 claimants, with 35,000 (36%) scoring less than 4 points.
Cerebrovascular Diseases have 56,000 claimants, with 19,000 (34%) scoring less than 4 points.
Cancer has 70,000 claimants, with 23,000 (33%) scoring less than 4 points.
Epilepsy has 36,000 claimants, with 11,000 (30%) scoring less than 4 points.
Other Psychiatric Disorders have 90,000 claimants, with 25,000 (28%) scoring less than 4 points.
Cerebral Palsy and Neurological Muscular Diseases have 47,000 claimants, with 11,000 (24%) scoring less than 4 points.
Psychotic Disorders have 112,000 claimants, with 26,000 (23%) scoring less than 4 points.
ADHD / ADD has 75,000 claimants, with 14,000 (19%) scoring less than 4 points.
Autistic Spectrum Disorders have 206,000 claimants, with 13,000 (6%) scoring less than 4 points.
Learning Disabilities have 188,000 claimants, with 7,000 (3%) scoring less than 4 points.
Other disabling condition groups with smaller proportions of the PIP caseload are included in the ‘Other Conditions’ category. This includes:
- Visual Diseases
- Other General Musculoskeletal Diseases
- Endocrine Diseases
- Hearing Disorders
- Gastrointestinal Diseases
- Genitourinary Diseases
- Skin Diseases
- Autoimmune Diseases (Connective Tissue Disorders)
- Infectious Diseases
- Diseases of the Liver, Gallbladder or Biliary Tract
- Haematological Diseases
- Metabolic Diseases
- Multisystem and Extremes of Age
- Diseases of the Immune System
Anxiety and Depression
- Anxiety disorders – Other / type not known
- Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Stress reaction disorders – Other / type not known
- Generalised anxiety disorder
- Phobia – Specific
- Phobia – Social
- Agoraphobia
- Panic disorder
- Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)
- Anxiety and depressive disorders – mixed
- Conversion disorder (hysteria)
- Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD)
- Dissociative disorders – Other / type not known
- Somatoform disorders – Other / type not known
- Depressive disorder
- Bipolar affective disorder (Hypomania / Mania)
- Mood disorders – Other / type not known
You might be eligible for the daily living component of PIP if you require assistance with daily tasks. The DWP will evaluate how challenging you find daily living and mobility tasks. For each task, the DWP will consider the descriptors.
Daily living component for PIP
You might get the daily living component of PIP if you need help with:
- eating, drinking or preparing food
- washing, bathing, using the toilet, managing incontinence
- dressing and undressing
- talking, listening, reading and understanding
- managing your medicines or treatments
- making decisions about money
- mixing with other people
How difficulty with tasks is assessed
The DWP will assess how difficult you find daily living and mobility tasks.
For each task, the DWP will look at:
- whether you can do it safely
- how long it takes you
- how often your condition affects this activity
- whether you need help to do it, from a person or using extra equipment
Your capabilities are assessed against a set of standard statements, known as descriptors, which outline what you can or cannot do. The health professional will guide the DWP on which descriptor is applicable to you for each activity.
Citizen’s Advice has an entire section dedicated to this, complete with a downloadable guide detailing the points awarded for each response – you can access it here. For instance, there are six descriptors for ‘Dressing and undressing’, ranging from ‘Can dress and undress unaided’ to ‘Cannot dress or undress at all’.
Each descriptor carries a points score between 0 and 12.
Regarding aids or appliances
Your ability to perform daily living activities and mobility activities will be evaluated as if you were using any aids or appliances that would be reasonable for you to use.
This holds true whether or not you typically use those aids or appliances. However, if you utilise or require aids and appliances, this could help you accumulate more points – learn more here.
Citizens Advice clarifies: “An aid is any item which improves, provides or replaces impaired physical or mental function. It doesn’t have to be specially designed as a disability aid. Examples include a stool you need to sit on when cooking, or a walking stick to help you stand.”
Daily living scores
Citizens Advice clarifies that to qualify for the daily living component of PIP, your physical or mental health must hinder your ability to perform certain tasks.
The maximum number of PIP points you can score for each question is indicated.
Daily living activity:
- Preparing food – 8
- Taking medication – 10
- Managing therapy or monitoring a health condition – 8
- Washing and bathing – 8
- Managing toilet needs or incontinence – 8
- Dressing and undressing – 8
- Communicating verbally – 12
- Reading and understanding symbols and words – 8
- Engaging with other people face to face – 8
- Making budgeting decisions – 6
Points and payment rates
After answering all the daily living activity questions:
- If you get between 8 and 11 points in total – you will be awarded the standard rate of PIP
- If you get at least 12 points in total – you will be awarded the enhanced rate of PIP
After answering all the mobility activity questions:
- If you get between 8 and 11 points in total – you will be awarded the standard rate of PIP
- If you get at least 12 points in total – you will be awarded the enhanced rate of PIP
The latest DWP figures show that at the end of January there were 3.7 million PIP claimants across Great Britain. Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall has previously noted that over 1,000 PIP claims are being granted daily, underscoring the need for welfare reforms to ensure future sustainability.
Subject to parliamentary approval, these proposed changes are set to take effect in November 2026. The reforms also propose an increase in face-to-face assessments. Currently, most are carried out remotely via phone calls, video calls, or paper-based methods.
However, PIP payments will not be frozen. They will remain non-means-tested and will rise in line with the September inflation rate. There will be no alterations to the mobility component.
You can participate in the UK Government’s consultation on the proposed changes to PIP and the benefits system on GOV.UK here. The consultation concludes on June 30, 2025.
