IMRAN HUSSAIN: 'DWP disability benefit cuts could become Labour's poll tax moment'

It’s with a heavy heart that I write about the Government’s proposed Welfare Reform Bill.

The planned cuts to Personal Independence Payments (PIP) are already turning the lives of some of the most vulnerable people in Britain into a nightmare of fear and uncertainty.

These changes are not the way forward. Moreover, they are certainly not remotely helpful to those who rely on PIP to live with dignity and independence.

We cannot claim to be a democratic and inclusive society if we punish people for circumstances beyond their control, while pretending we are levelling the playing field. These cuts do not fix a broken system — they make it worse.

In my Bradford East constituency, where half of all children are growing up in poverty, I hear first-hand from constituents who are terrified they may lose their PIP support. The sense of panic is real. And so is the damage.

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Let’s be honest with ourselves: PIP supports people with serious physical or mental health needs — people who often require help to cut their food, to wash, or to go to the toilet. These are not luxuries. They are necessities. And losing that support would strip away the last threads of independence and dignity that people have.

The anxiety is palpable. People already feel pushed to the brink. Now, they fear falling off it altogether.

These reforms may have been presented with good intentions, but they place us on a road that leads straight back to austerity and failure. They are not guided by a moral compass, but by the cold calculations of a Treasury spreadsheet — the same spreadsheet that failed to anticipate the human impact of scrapping the Winter Fuel Allowance.

Let me be absolutely clear: these cuts are not the Labour way. If passed it will lead to extreme poverty for the most vulnerable in its tracks. That’s why I have joined more than 100 Labour MPs in signing a reasoned amendment to stop this unjust legislation in its tracks.

I urge the Government to heed the warnings of Labour MPs, disability rights campaigners, and charities. If they do not, we risk walking straight into a political disaster — one that could become Labour’s poll tax moment.

We must learn the lessons of the Winter Fuel U-turn. When it was clear the policy was wrong, we changed course. We must do the same here.

Because let’s be honest - we all know this is wrong. It is wrong to persecute those most in need. It is wrong to target people with mental health conditions. It is wrong to attack the most vulnerable.

That is why I will not vote for this Bill. Because stripping away vital support is not the way to build a fairer society. The Government must rethink these damaging proposals, reject further cuts to disability benefits, and focus instead on raising living standards and protecting those most at risk.

There are clear and fair alternatives available. The Government could raise funds through a simple two per cent wealth tax on the super-rich — which could raise £24 billion a year-would put

The burden on the broadest shoulders, while protecting those most in need. It could continue to invest in jobs, infrastructure and public services to revitalise the economy after 14 years of Tory decline.

Instead, this Bill targets those least able to fight back. It sows fear, breeds injustice, and abandons principle.

If we continue down this path, we risk repeating the mistakes of the past — and creating a defining failure of this Government.

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