There has been understandable concern over the UK Government’s announcement that it will make changes to disability benefits. Anything that impacts on people’s day-to-day lives when they are already in a state of difficulty or distress is worrying – and it’s clear that people will be negatively affected by these changes.  

The narrowing of PIP eligibility will make it more difficult for people experiencing severe difficulties with their mental health to access payments, and the halving of available UTC payments for new claimants will increase the risk of poverty. (You can read more about the changes here: Benefits shake-up confirmed – Martin Lewis’ MSE News 

The Government has said that this is intended to “promote work [and] address perverse incentives.” But reducing the resources available to people dealing with mental health difficulties will not achieve this aim. People need breathing space to rebuild and recover; as the WHO and UN have noted, increasing the risk of poverty actually contributes to further mental health harm. These changes greatly risk pushing people further into a state of distress, rather than providing help to move forward.  

The WHO has also recently called on global governments to adopt mental health policies that include a focus on economic risk, and that prioritise economic interventions. The spring statement falls short of meeting this recommendation. 

Overall, we feel that the Spring Statement is harmful and counter-productive. These policy decisions do not create the circumstances for people to have good mental health, and instead risk trapping people in poverty and distress.  

If, instead, the Government were to focus on creating the support and cultural shifts needed to make sure people experiencing severe distress were adequately supported, without fear or stigma, the time needed for people to heal would in many instances greatly decrease. 

 Fear does not lead to healing. 

Further reading: we have written at length about the myth of the ‘work-shy’ mental health benefits claimant, based on decades of our experience working directly with people affected. You can read that here: Mental health and unemployment: the ‘work-shy’ myth