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Universal Credit Support
- 6 minutes ago
- 3 min read
The welfare system too often feels punitive rather than supportive. For many disabled people, there is a growing sense that their voices are not being heard. In Parliament yesterday, I raised the case of a constituent that illustrates these failures all too clearly.
Through no fault of their own, their Universal Credit (UC) claim was stopped in January. They are wheelchair-dependent, seriously unwell, and have a terminal diagnosis. Months later, despite invaluable support from the team at Newbury Soup Kitchen, they have been left with no income at all.
After hours spent on the phone, they have been met with contradictory advice, inaccessible processes, and broken promises. They were asked to attend an in‑person meeting despite being unable to do so, then offered a remote alternative that was not actually available locally.
At a time when disabled people’s income is being severely stretched by rising energy prices and food costs, this isn’t good enough. Sadly, this is not an isolated case but part of a wider pattern being seen by advice services and charities nationwide.
Before they came into office, the Labour Party were committed to overhauling a punishing system to one that gives people “dignity and respect.” However, we all remember last summer when the £5bn worth of disability cuts were stopped due to a major backbench rebellion. The personal independence payments changes may have been scrapped, but the UC cut went through, and this month the UC “health element” (LCWRA) for new claimants has been chopped in half (£423.27 to £217.26).
For disabled people with long-term health conditions, this isn’t going to encourage them into work but plunge them into financial hardship. Local services such as Newbury Soup Kitchen are a lifeline and bridge the gap between the most vulnerable and a system that too frequently fails to come to their need. Strikingly, Citizens Advice supported over 110,000 disabled people access crisis support such as food banks in 2024 alone.
With 8.4 million people on Universal Credit as of January 2026, two things can be true at once: we need to bring the welfare bill down, but still deliver a compassionate, evidence-based system that supports the most vulnerable in society.
The Liberal Democrats want to make it easier for disabled people to access the world of work. From preventative healthcare to a social energy tariff to raising employers’ awareness of the Access to Work scheme, this is the fundamental and fair change that is needed to bring down rising welfare costs.
Crucially, Access to Work is an underutilised yet failing system, and we need to make sure the scheme is fit for purpose by simplifying and speeding up the application process. Just a couple months ago the DWP told the Public Account Committee that disabled people who need support will have to wait 37 weeks for a decision on their application.
This is leading to people not getting the job they applied for, businesses being unable to survive due to not receiving the money they expected, and charities being stretched to breaking point.
After my question in Parliament, I have followed up with the Secretary of State to secure a meeting with a minister to discuss this case. I will use that opportunity not only to secure answers for this constituent but to push for the wider, root‑and‑branch reforms that the system so clearly needs.
