FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
On Wednesday 21 May, Disability Wales and its members will travel to Westminster to take part in a mass lobby against the UK Government’s proposals to slash disability benefits — cuts that threaten the financial security and basic human rights of disabled people across the country.
There is considerable fear and anger across Wales following the publication of the Pathways to Work Green Paper and the Chancellor’s Spring Statement, which together promise a £5billion “crackdown” on disability benefits.
Disabled people in Wales could lose up to £4,500 a year under these proposals. These are not abstract numbers — they represent heating bills unpaid, meals skipped, and care left unaffordable for many. All this, whilst the real barriers to employment and independent living remain unchallenged.
The UK Government present these changes as incentive to get more disabled people into work and deem benefits such as Personal Independence Payments (PIP) as a drain on the economy, failing to recognise the vital role it plays in enabling disabled people’s participation in society, including the workplace.
These changes aren’t about supporting disabled people into employment, they’re about cutting lifelines whilst ignoring the discrimination and structural inequalities we face every day.
This will be a key message in Wednesday’s Lobby as disabled people seek to make it clear that we will not be silent whilst our rights and livelihoods are dismantled.
Ahead of the journey to London, Rhian Davies, Chief Executive of Disability Wales, said:
“Cuts to PIP will have a disproportionate impact on disabled people in Wales with 190,000 claimants affected and a projected loss of £450m which will affect individuals, communities and the wider economy. The daily costs of living are significantly higher for disabled people which is why PIP is such a lifeline for many in supporting independent living and in enabling many to continue working. We are increasingly concerned and alarmed at the high levels of fear and anxiety many of our members are experiencing at the prospect of these cuts with some reporting suicidal feelings. UK Government must bring an end to these cruel proposals and take time to engage more meaningfully with disabled people in tackling disabling barriers in society, including in employment”.
Disability Wales calls on all Welsh MPs to meet with lobbyists on the day to hear directly from those affected, and to take a stand against these unjust proposals.
The lobby represents an opportunity for disabled people and allies from across the UK to unite in demanding a benefits system that supports, not punishes, and serves as a call to action to politicians, policymakers, and the public: stand with us, or stand by while our rights are stripped away.
NOTES TO EDITORS
- Disability Wales (DW) is the national association of Disabled People’s Organisations striving for the rights and equality of all disabled people.
- For media enquiries, please contact miranda.evans@disabilitywales.org
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