judicial review

Labour doubles down on slashing billions from DWP’s disability benefits bill

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https://www.bigissue.com/news/social-justice/dwp-disability-benefits-bill-high-court-ruling/

Work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall speaking in parliament. Image: House of Commons/ Flickr

The Labour government has indicated that it will stick with Tory plans to cut disability benefits after a High Court judge ruled the previous government’s consultation into the plans was unlawful.

The proposals would cut around £400 a month from the disability benefits of hundreds of thousands of new applicants by 2029, compared to what they would receive under the current system.

Earlier today (16 January) Mr Justice Calver ruled in favour of disability activist Ellen Clifford, who had brought a judicial review of the public consultation that was held by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in autumn 2023. 

The proposals would change the way the work capability assessment (WCA) functions, by reducing the weight attached to difficulties with mobility and getting around in considering applicants’ level of disability. 

Responding to today’s verdict, a government spokesperson said: “The judge has found the previous government failed to adequately explain their proposals. As part of wider reforms that help people into work and ensure fiscal sustainability, the government will re-consult on the WCA descriptor changes, addressing the shortcomings in the previous consultation, in light of the judgment.

“The government intends to deliver the full level of savings in the public finances forecasts.”

It is not clear if Labour will consult on all the proposals in the original consultation, some of which were subsequently dropped, or whether it will only consult on the proposals that the last government chose to take forward.

The High Court ruling doesn’t force the government to ditch the proposals, although it would make it very difficult to proceed with them without holding a new consultation first. 

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Article continues at https://www.bigissue.com/news/social-justice/dwp-disability-benefits-bill-high-court-ruling/

Continue ReadingLabour doubles down on slashing billions from DWP’s disability benefits bill

DWP’s ‘misleading and unfair’ consultation on disability benefit reforms unlawful, High Court rules

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https://www.bigissue.com/news/social-justice/dwp-disability-benefits-reforms-consultation-ruling/

A meeting of the child poverty taskforce. From left to right: Mayor of the North East Kim McGuinness, work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall and education secretary Bridget Phillippson. Image: Department for Education/ Flickr

Tory ministers presented reforms to disability benefits as a way to support disabled people into work – and they would have seen many worse off by at least £416.19 per month

The Department for Work and Pensions’ (DWP) consultation into plans to slash billions of pounds from disability benefits has been ruled unlawful in a damning High Court judgement.

In a judgment published this morning (16 January), Mr Justice Calver said that the judicial review, brought by disability activist Ellen Clifford, had “surmounted the substantial hurdle of establishing that the consultation was so unfair as to be unlawful”.

Repeatedly describing the DWP consultation in autumn 2023 as “misleading”, “rushed” and “unfair”, he said:

• The consultation documents failed to highlight the “substantial” loss of benefits facing those affected by the proposals.

• The consultation gave the “misleading impression” that changes were required to ensure deaf and disabled people could access employment support, when they could already choose to access this voluntarily.

• Despite the consultation presenting the changes as being solely about helping disabled people into work, in reality “costs savings was at least one of the two bases, if not the central basis, on which decisions would be taken on which policies would be taken forward by the government”.

• The eight-week consultation was unlawfully short in the circumstances.

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Article continues at https://www.bigissue.com/news/social-justice/dwp-disability-benefits-reforms-consultation-ruling/

Continue ReadingDWP’s ‘misleading and unfair’ consultation on disability benefit reforms unlawful, High Court rules

DWP wants to reform benefits to cut costs, not help disabled people into work, court hears

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https://www.bigissue.com/news/social-justice/dwp-benefit-reforms-disabled-people-judicial-review/

Work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall speaking in parliament. Image: House of Commons/ Flickr

The High Court has heard a legal challenge against a Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) plan to reform disability benefits under the guise of helping people into employment

“We are determined to have a welfare system that encourages and supports people into work, while providing a vital safety net for those who need it most.”

So began the Department for Work and Pensions’ (DWP) consultation into changing disability benefit assessment rules – changes that are predicted to cut the financial support given to around 450,000 disabled people by 2029, but which the consultation presented entirely as helping them. 

But contrary to this rose tinting, internal DWP documents revealed at a High Court hearing last week suggest the proposals were at least as much about the Tories’ determination to cut benefits spending as they were about helping disabled people into work.

In fact, DWP officials warned that evidence was needed to justify their line that the measures were about supporting disabled people rather than saving money, while the government rushed the consultation through in time for the savings to be counted in last year’s Autumn Statement.

DWP officials were also aware of the potential mental health impact of cutting benefits to some claimants who would be affected by the measures.

And while an official impact assessment into the plans has still not been published, the court disclosures suggest up to 100,000 disabled people could be pushed into absolute poverty by the changes – although the exact basis of this figure is uncertain. 

The revelations came as a result of a judicial review into the legality of the consultation that was heard last week. The case has been brought by disability campaigner Ellen Clifford, a member of Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC). 

And while the consultation took place under the last government, the current Labour government has not dropped the planned cuts – and has fought the judicial review at every step. 

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Read the rest of a detailed report at https://www.bigissue.com/news/social-justice/dwp-benefit-reforms-disabled-people-judicial-review/

Keir Starmer confirms that he's proud to be a red Tory continuing austerity and targeting poor and disabled scum.
Keir Starmer confirms that he’s proud to be a red Tory continuing austerity and targeting poor and disabled scum.

Continue ReadingDWP wants to reform benefits to cut costs, not help disabled people into work, court hears

Unite launches legal challenge to overturn winter fuel payment cut

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https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/b/h-lead-unite-launches-legal-challenge-overturn-winter-fuel-payment-cut

UNITE has launched judicial review proceedings seeking to overturn government cuts to the winter fuel allowance for millions of pensioners.

The union submitted a pre-action notice to Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall on October 29 after the Budget kept the benefits cut for all but the poorest pensioners.

Unite said it will seek leave of the High Court to mount a full judicial review should the government not respond to the letter and reverse its decision by November 7.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “People do not understand — I do not understand — how a Labour government has taken away the fuel allowance of millions of pensioners just as winter approaches.

“Given the failure to rectify this in the budget, Unite has now commenced judicial review proceedings challenging the legality of the policy.

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https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/b/h-lead-unite-launches-legal-challenge-overturn-winter-fuel-payment-cut

Keir Starmer says pensioners can freeze to death and poor children can starve and be condemned to failure and misery all their lives.
Keir Starmer says pensioners can freeze to death and poor children can starve and be condemned to failure and misery all their lives.
Keir Starmer explains that he feels no shame or guilt benefitting personally from gifts from the rich and powerful while insisting on policies of severe austerity causing suffering and death.
Keir Starmer explains that he feels no shame or guilt benefitting personally from gifts from the rich and powerful while insisting on policies of severe austerity causing suffering and death.
Continue ReadingUnite launches legal challenge to overturn winter fuel payment cut

Chris Packham launches legal challenge over UK’s watering down of climate policies

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Chris Packham by Garry Knight from London, England - People's Walk for Wildlife 2018 - 04, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=76235680
Chris Packham by Garry Knight from London, England – People’s Walk for Wildlife 2018 – 04, CC BY 2.0.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/dec/04/chris-packham-launches-legal-challenge-over-uks-watering-down-of-climate-policies

Chris Packham has filed a high court legal challenge to the UK government over its decision to weaken key climate policies.

The broadcaster and environmental campaigner has applied for a judicial review of the government’s decision to ditch the timetable for phasing out petrol and diesel powered cars and vans, gas boilers, off-grid fossil fuel domestic heating and minimum energy ratings for homes.

A Department for Energy Security and Net Zero spokesperson said it rejected Packham’s claims and would “robustly” defend the challenge. The measures and their schedule had been set out in the government’s carbon budget delivery plan, which was put before parliament in March this year.

In September, Rishi Sunak announced he would delay the ban on selling new diesel and petrol cars from 2030 to 2035 and that 20% of households would be exempt from a new gas boiler ban among other changes, arguing that he did not want to burden ordinary people with the costs.

Following the announcement, Packham wrote to Sunak, the energy secretary and the transport secretary to challenge the decision, arguing that the prime minister did not have the legal right to change the timeline of carbon budget pledges at will, since the actioning of the carbon budget delivery plan was governed by statute.

Packham said he did not receive a satisfactory response to his letter and therefore filed the judicial review application.

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Image of UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak reads 1% RICHEST 100% CLIMATE DENIER
Image of UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak reads 1% RICHEST 100% CLIMATE DENIER

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/dec/04/chris-packham-launches-legal-challenge-over-uks-watering-down-of-climate-policies

Continue ReadingChris Packham launches legal challenge over UK’s watering down of climate policies