Mind call for independent investigation to understand new PIP stats
Mind is concerned that thousands of people with mental health problems may be missing out on vital support that they should be entitled to.
The Department for Work and Pensions is currently in the process of reviewing more than 1.6m PIP claims in order to identify people who are entitled to additional financial support as a result of recent legal judgements about mental health and mobility.
According to statistics released by the Department for Work and Pensions, 0.8% of 440,000 claims reviewed have led to an increased award. This compares to an original estimate in 2017 that 14% of claims reviewed would see an increase. This estimate was cited multiple times before parliament and before the courts as part of the Government’s arguments about the changes. Mind is concerned that thousands of people with mental health problems may be missing out on vital support that they should be entitled to.
We are calling for an independent investigation to understand why there is such a stark disparity between the Department’s estimates and what has happened in practice.
Senior Policy and Campaigns Officer, Ayaz Manji, said:
“We’re incredibly alarmed by the figures shown today. Personal Independent Payments are vital to the welfare and independence of so many disabled people, but we know that many people are missing out on the payments they so desperately need to live well.
“When the Government first estimated the impact of these changes on people receiving PIP they said that more than one in ten people would see an increase to their award. According to figures published today the reality has been that just 0.8% have seen their award increase so far.
“If this is due to an error in the way these numbers were estimated, this is an error of monumental proportions. There will be thousands of people with mental health problems who will rightly be worried that the Government have not upheld their commitment to review their claims fully and fairly. We need to see an independent investigation to understand what has gone wrong here and what action the Department for Work and Pensions needs to take to fix it.”
