Publications

Context

The UK Department for Work and Pensions is consulting on its Pathways to Work Green Paper, which proposes a number of changes to the Personal Independence Payment and health element of Universal Credit. The DWP indicates that substantive changes to PIP and the health of UC, as well as the abolition of the Work Capability Assessment are being taken forward without consultation. The NIHRC raises concerns that this does not constitute effective participation of disabled persons and their representative organisation as required under international human rights law and that the measures have not effectively considered the impact on disabled people and people with long-term health conditions in NI.

Summary recommendations/messages

2.8 The Department for Work and Pensions liaises closely with the Department for Communities on measures set out in the Green Paper and ensures that measures are not brought forward in NI without a full equality impact assessment being carried out, at no detriment to the NI Executive’s block grant.

2.15 The Department for Work and Pensions consults meaningfully with people with disabilities and their representative organisations on changes to the Personal Independence Payment and the Universal Credit Health element, as well as the removal of the Work Capability Assessment set out in the Green Paper in advance of bringing forward these measures. The Department should include disabled people and their representative organisations in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of any changes brought forward from the Green Paper, ensuring that this participation is meaningful.

2.19 The Department for Work and Pensions works closely with the Department for Communities to create effective, tested employment support programmes, specific to NI’s context, produced alongside meaningful consultation with disabled people and their representative organisations before changes outlined in the Green Paper are introduced.

3.27 The Department for Work and Pensions should demonstrate how provisions set out in the Pathways to Work Green Paper reflect the best use of the maximum available resources and uphold the principle of non-retrogression.

3.28 The Department for Work and Pensions implements social security policy in line with the human rights model of disability, taking into account the recommendations of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

3.32 The Department for Work and Pensions produces a human rights impact assessment in respect of the measures set out in its Pathways to Work Green Paper. This assessment should consider the full range of human rights instruments to which the UK Government is party. The NIHRC further recommends that this human rights impact assessment is produced in close consultation with the NI Executive and takes account of the impact on the human rights of people living in NI.

4.15 The Department for Work and Pensions does not change the eligibility criteria for Personal Independence Payments without careful and robust consultation with disabled people and their representative organisations, including in NI.

4.16 The Department for Work and Pensions continues to ensure that the health element of Universal Credit rises with inflation and that any cuts to the health entitlement are delayed until the Department has conducted a cumulative impact assessment of these measures on persons with disabilities and long-term health conditions, including in NI.

4.17 Any changes to the Personal Independence Payment and health element of Universal Credit introduced are introduced alongside a robust support and engagement package, developed in conjunction with disabled people and their representative organisations, including in NI, to ensure that transition to new systems is well understood and the risk of affected individuals’ increased vulnerability to poverty is mitigated.

4.25 The Department for Work and Pensions engages with the Department for Communities on its proposals to move to a single assessment system for Personal Independence Payments and the health element of Universal Credit as a matter of urgency. Both Departments should ensure that they engage with disabled people and their representative organisations to understand the potential impact of any changes on these matters as a matter of urgency.

4.26 The Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Communities engage with disabled people, their representative organisations and organisations which provide advice on social security to determine issues with Personal Independence Payments assessments and address them, ensuring that such assessment processes are consistently monitored to ensure they are operating effectively for service users.

4.31 The Department for Work and Pensions engages with the Department for Communities and makes publicly available the required data to sufficiently analyse the impact of the proposal to delay access to the health element of universal credit until 22 years of age.

4.36 The Department for Work and Pensions ensures that changes to social security entitlements do not leave children with disabilities and their families and carers at a financial disadvantage, and ensure that children with disabilities are in receipt of social security payments that are sufficient to meet their additional required needs.

4.37 The Department for Work and Pensions consults effectively and robustly with children and young people with disabilities on any changes to entitlements to social security benefits which may affect them, ensuring that children and young people with disabilities have access to whatever mode of communication they need to facilitate expressing their views.

4.46 The Department for Work and Pensions ensures that additional funding made available to the NI Executive for use toward employment support is ring-fenced for that purpose.

4.52 The Department for Work and Pensions takes immediate steps to set out exactly what it means by introducing sanctions as a last resort and ensures that disabled people and their representative organisations are effectively consulted on these proposals.