A minister has been urged to resign, after he threatened a traumatised child abuse survivor – who is waiting to give evidence about the abuse in court – that his benefits would be stopped if he failed to co-operate … Continue reading →
Official figures suggest that a new appeal stage introduced for unsuccessful claimants has been little more than a delaying tactic aimed at reducing the number of disabled people claiming benefits, say campaigners. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has … Continue reading →
Appalled activists protested outside a London premiere last night after describing the film as a “disability snuff movie” that suggests disabled people are better off dead. The protest outside the Curzon Mayfair cinema in London’s West End was coordinated by … Continue reading →
A disabled parent has accused his local authority of discriminating against him by refusing to take his access needs into account when deciding which primary school his son can attend in September. Youcef Bey-Zekkoub believes the school admissions process … Continue reading →
By John Pring Disability News Service Thursday 26th May 2016 Labour’s shadow chancellor has called for Iain Duncan Smith to face criminal charges over allegations that his failure to address a coroner’s concerns about the “fitness for work” test led … Continue reading →
The government may have abandoned its target to halve the disability employment gap, according to a leading disabled people’s organisation. Disability Rights UK (DR UK) said it feared comments made last week by the new work and pensions secretary, Stephen … Continue reading →
By Patrick Butler and John Pring ‘Peer reviews’ challenge claims by ministers that there is no connection between welfare reform policies and deaths of vulnerable claimants A series of secret internal inquiries into the deaths of people claiming social security … Continue reading →
The new chair of the equality watchdog has taken up his new post, despite question-marks over potential conflicts of interest arising from his legal firm’s work for the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and other government departments. David Isaac … Continue reading →
Disabled campaigners are hoping a new government taskforce will lead to apprenticeships becoming more accessible to disabled people, despite concerns over who ministers will invite to take part. Three government departments announced this week that they have set up the … Continue reading →
Two disabled peers have criticised ministers for refusing to collect figures that would demonstrate the impact of a key element of new benefit rules that will see tens of thousands of people losing their Motability vehicles. The Liberal Democrat peer … Continue reading →
A report by peers on the impact of equality legislation on disabled people appears to have secured its first success, after the government agreed to bring into force taxi regulations – 20 years after they were first included in legislation. … Continue reading →
By John Pring Disability News Service Thursday 5th May 2016 Scottish police are assessing whether to launch a criminal investigation into the failure of two government ministers to address a coroner’s concerns about the safety of the “fitness for … Continue reading →
Leaving the European Union (EU) would put at risk significant improvements that have been made to the lives of disabled people over the last 15 years, according to three of the country’s leading academics working in the disability rights field. … Continue reading →
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is facing claims that it is deliberately misleading benefit claimants into thinking they have no right of appeal if they miss the deadline for applying for the new personal independence payment (PIP). … Continue reading →
The government has appointed a commercial lawyer to chair the equality and human rights watchdog, despite MPs raising serious concerns about a potential conflict of interest caused by his firm’s work for the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). The … Continue reading →
The government has told the equality watchdog that it plans to slash its budget again, even though the financial year has already started. The planned cuts only emerged after the Government Equalities Office (GEO) told Disability News Service (DNS) that … Continue reading →
A disability charity is set to scrap a team of disabled staff members dedicated to empowering the residents of its care homes, in a bid to cope with a budgetary black hole. Leonard Cheshire Disability (LCD) has told its award-winning, … Continue reading →
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has proposed scrapping two benefit regulations that offer vital protection to disabled people facing the controversial “fitness for work” test. In response to a freedom of information request, DWP has sent Disability News … Continue reading →
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has drawn up secret plans for sweeping reforms that would make it far harder for disabled people to appeal against having their benefit claims turned down. The heavily-redacted document was sent to Disability … Continue reading →
By John Pring Disability News Service Thursday 22nd October 2015 The government has rejected three key recommendations by a cross-party committee of MPs that were aimed at improving the safety and transparency of its benefits sanctions regime. In its response … Continue reading →