PIP will also mean a mobility vehicle if you want one, and hopefully more money once ATOS has weeded out the long term malingerers…it’s good news that Maria Miller MP has buggered off to another department in the recent reshuffle…I suspect the full extent of her medling in disabled peoples futures will soon dawn upon us all!
Here is what Maria Miller says in her defense: It’s true that we’ve had to make some tough decisions to help tackle the enormous debt that we inherited from the previous Government but our commitment to protect the people who really need our services and support is clear and has not changed.
I know that a lot of you will be worried about how the spending review might affect you or your family so I wanted to explain the changes we have made and will be making to Disability Living Allowance (DLA).
The change to DLA announced in the Spending Review last week affects people living in residential care. Their local authority care funding already provides for all aspects of day to day life and DLA mobility component meant a duplication of funding. Those in residential care will no longer receive the DLA mobility element. As soon as a person leaves full-time care they will receive their award again if they are still eligible for it.
DLA is designed to help with the extra costs associated with disability so we have no plans to means test it or to make it dependent on National Insurance contributions. It will continue to be available to disabled people who have never been able to work as well as to those who move in and out of work.
We know that DLA is an important benefit for many disabled people and we are committed to providing it but we are concerned that the application and assessment processes are complicated, lengthy and too often decisions are inconsistent. We want to modernise the assessment process and make sure this benefit is focused on supporting the people who it is intended to help.
The way DLA works is flawed and the current claims process means that too often people who don’t qualify or whose condition has changed can carry on getting money that really should be going to people who need it. This is why we announced in June we will introduce a new, objective assessment for people who receive DLA.
It is not right that a vital support for disabled people is open to abuse.
Many measures in the Spending Review have been specifically designed to protect disabled people in these difficult financial times. People in receipt of DLA will not be subject to benefit caps and will be excluded from some of the restrictions on Housing Benefit. All of this has underlined our commitment to disabled people with an extra £2bn for social care and continuing of the £6bn to Supporting People, more disabled people supported into employment than ever before and the piloting of Right to Control.
These are difficult times with tough decisions to make but we are committed to doing all we can to support disabled people to be able to have the opportunity to live more independent lives and have choice in how their support is provided.
(Me: I might add, Luv Maria xxxx !!!)