Labour urged to scrap 'shameful' benefits cuts on eve of reform announcement

The SNP has urged Keir Starmer to abandon "shameful" cuts to benefits for disabled people.

Work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall is expected to set out social security reforms tomorrow.

The UK Government wants to get more people off welfare and back into work, and says the reforms, including changes to eligibility for Personal Independence Payments (Pip), will benefit the public purse. 

Health secretary Wes Streeting has said too many people are "written off" amidst an "over-diagnosis" of mental health conditions.

Five of the 37 Scottish Labour MPs have offered their full backing to reforms.

But charities have warned of the likely impact on households, with Citizens Advice chief Dame Clare Moriarty saying the move "does not feel consistent with a government that really wants to raise living standards, tackle child poverty, [and] end mass dependence on emergency food parcels".

Spending on health and disability benefits is expected to increase from £64.7bn in 2023-24 to £100bn by 2029-30.

The Office for Budget Responsibility has said working-age adults will make up the largest contribution to the increase and expenditure on Pip is forecast to hit £34bn by the same year.

The Department for Work and Pensions said "the welfare system is broken and needs reform so it is fairer on the taxpayer [and] helps long-term sick and disabled people who can work to find employment whilst ensuring it provides support for those who need it most".

Tory education spokesperson Laura Trott MP said her party supports the "principle of welfare reform" but is unclear on the details of Labour's plan. She said the government is "all over the place" on the issue.

Stephen Flynn, the SNP's Westminster leader, has called Starmer to "scrap the Labour Party's cuts to disabled people and ditch its broken Tory spending rules", which he says are "the central problem".

Flynn said: "The prime minister has already slashed the winter fuel payment, increased National Insurance taxes on small businesses, blocked compensation for Waspi women, and cut the welfare state."

He added: "Voters were promised things would get better but the UK economy is tanking, businesses are cutting jobs, and families are paying more as the cost of energy, food and bills soar on Keir Starmer's watch.

"The Labour government has boxed itself in with its Tory austerity rules and its political choice to stay out of the EU single market, which is wiping billions of pounds from public finances that could otherwise boost household incomes and protect public services."