Starmer faces backbench rebellion over Pip benefit squeeze, Labour MPs indicate

Sir Keir Starmer faces a growing backbench rebellion over cuts to a disability benefit, Labour MPs have indicated after the party lost almost 200 council seats in England last week.

One of the party’s MPs Ian Byrne (Liverpool West Derby) said he would “swim through vomit to vote against” proposed welfare changes.

He was joined in criticising the policy by his Labour colleagues Richard Burgon (Leeds East), Rachael Maskell (York Central), Andy McDonald (Middlesbrough and Thornaby East), Cat Eccles (Stourbridge), Nadia Whittome (Nottingham East), Imran Hussain (Bradford East) and Ian Lavery (Blyth and Ashington), who each said they were among the MPs who would vote against the Government’s proposals.

If the Government's going to recoup costs from somewhere, they should cast their gaze away from some of the most vulnerable in our society and instead look at those with the broadest shoulders

In its Pathways to Work Green Paper, the Government has proposed tightening the eligibility requirements for the personal independence payment, known as Pip.

A claimant must score a minimum of four points on one Pip daily living activity, such as preparing food, washing and bathing, using the toilet or reading, to receive the daily living element of the benefit.

According to the document, “this means that people who only score the lowest points on each of the Pip daily living activities will lose their entitlement in future”.

Speaking in Westminster Hall, Labour’s Bell Ribeiro-Addy said: “My biggest fear overall is that we may ultimately count the cost of these cuts in lost lives.

“Lest we forget that study that attributed 330,000 excess deaths in Britain between 2012 and 2019 to the last round of austerity cuts.

“There’s no denying that the number of people who are claiming sickness and disability benefits are rising, but we can’t ignore the fact that increasing claimants are linked to an ageing population and a decade of underinvestment in our health services.

“If the Government’s going to recoup costs from somewhere, they should cast their gaze away from some of the most vulnerable in our society and instead look at those with the broadest shoulders.”

The MP for Clapham and Brixton Hill told MPs that the move will “not win the Government any favours with the electorate”.

Last week, we saw the people's judgment of unpopular, unnecessary and immoral cuts

Quoting former Labour shadow chancellor John McDonnell, who sits as the independent MP for Hayes and Harlington, Mr Byrne said: “‘I will swim through vomit to vote against’ them.

“I cannot express to the minister (Sir Stephen Timms) the scale of the devastation this will have on disabled people in my constituency and indeed the country.”

Mr Byrne later continued: “This is not what the Labour Party was formed to do.

“So I conclude with this appeal to the minister, we were elected last summer on a promise of ‘change’. These cruel cuts are not the change people voted for.

“Last week, we saw the people’s judgment of unpopular, unnecessary and immoral cuts.”

Mother of the House Diane Abbott, the Labour MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington who tabled Wednesday’s debate, accused the Government of putting forward “contradictory arguments”.

She said: “On the one hand, they insist they are helping the disabled by putting them back to work.

“But on the other hand, they say this cut will save £9 billion.

In the short run, putting disabled people into jobs will not save money, it will actually cost more

“Well, you can’t do both.

“Putting disabled people into rewarding, sustained employment – which we would all support – means spending money, money on training, therapy, childcare.

“In the short run, putting disabled people into jobs will not save money, it will actually cost more.

“The only certain way that cutting Pip saves the billions of pounds that the Government wants is by making Pip recipients live on less, and this is something ministers claim that they do not want to do.”

But David Pinto-Duschinsky, the Labour MP for Hendon, said MPs cannot “ignore this issue” of health-related benefit claimant figures rising at, on some metrics, “twice the rate of underlying health conditions”.

He suggested a wealth tax is a “speculative” solution, and said: “Exactly because the system is so essential, we must also safeguard its future.”

Responding to the debate, social security minister Sir Stephen said: “Claims to Pip are set to more than double, from two million to over 4.3 million this decade, partly accounted for by a 17% increase in disability prevalence, that’s been mentioned, but the increase in benefit caseload is much, much higher.

“And it would certainly not be in the interests of people currently claiming the benefits for the Government to bury its head in the sand over that rate of increase.

We want a more proactive, pro-work system that supports people better and supports the economy as well

“So following the Green Paper, we’re consulting on how best to support those affected by the eligibility changes, we’re looking to improve the Pip assessment – as has been mentioned, I’m going to lead a review of that – but the current system produces poor employment outcomes, high economic inactivity, low living standards, high costs to the taxpayer.

“It needs to change.

“We want a more proactive, pro-work system that supports people better and supports the economy as well.”