Disabled people have lost £500m since 2010, claims report

23 Oct 2012 News

Disability coalition 'the Hardest Hit' has released a report claiming that disabled people have experienced a drop in income of £500m since the emergency budget of 2010.

Disability coalition 'the Hardest Hit' has released a report claiming that disabled people have experienced a drop in income of £500m since the emergency budget of 2010.

The Tipping Point, published yesterday, highlights the impact of the government's welfare cuts and reforms on disabled people.

It brings together a survey of over 4,500 disabled people, a poll of more than 350 independent welfare advisers, and more than 50 interviews with a range of disabled people.

The Tipping Point cites Destination Unknown, a summer 2012 report by think tank Demos, for the £500m figure.

The same source claims that cuts range from £200 to £2,065 for typical disabled households in the past year alone, and estimates that disabled people will experience £9bn cuts over the lifetime of this parliament.

Care budgets ‘down by £2bn’

The Tipping Point also states that £2bn is being taken out of care budgets by local authorities even though demand for care services continues to grow, and that there have been vast hikes in charges for essential services, including a £77m rise in charges for care.

The report sources the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS) April/May 2012 budget survey for both these figures.

Author of The Tipping Point, the Hardest Hit, is a coalition of over 90 disability charities and organisations, organised jointly by the Disability Benefits Consortium (DBC) and the UK Disabled People’s Council, who have come together to fight against the government’s cuts to benefits and services for disabled people.

System ‘not fair or effective’

Mind is encouraging supporters to email their MP and alert them to the report.
 
Commenting on the report, Mind chief executive Paul Farmer said: “It is vital that more people know about the impact of cuts and changes to welfare and benefits on disabled people, including large numbers of people with mental health problems.

“This report clearly demonstrates both that the current system is not working fairly and effectively, and that changes that are due to come in soon are likely to make things even worse for disabled people.”

The Tipping Point is available in full on the Mind website.

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