The new Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, unveiled huge new cuts to the defensive line – benefits – as part of the spring statement revealed on Wednesday. We have to find a further £14 billion in savings just to remain within current borrowing rules. That’s the reasoning behind our decision to make these cuts. This far-reaching reform will touch the lives of more than 3 million Britons. Families are estimated to be £1,720 worse off per year on average.
Analysis finds that 370,000 people now receiving personal independence payments will be cut off from this help. Plus, 430,000 people who would have been eligible to receive these payments in the future will now be ineligible. This legislative change undermines their financial base for years to come. For people they are removing personal independence payments from, the average expected yearly monetary deprivation will be £4,500.
There’s no doubt that the Chancellor’s announcement is a bold one that signals a sea change in welfare policy. These cuts will disproportionately hurt women and people of color. The spring statement has portrayed these developments not as an attack on public investment, but as unavoidable steps to restore the public finances to a sustainable and lawful course. The consequences for people who depend on public assistance are severe and far-reaching.
Families and communities across the nation will pay the price of this harmful decision. They will experience an income shock as welfare benefits contract. The national reach of these cuts highlights the difficult line between fiscal prudence and antipoverty aid.