In the very first day of the parliament the new Tory government refused the rights of the disabled by removing the option for disability claimants to choose whether the outcome of work assessments is shared with their GP.
The Department for Work & Pensions (DWP) took this decision on Monday.
Now the DWP can take any decision by asking doctor’s not to sign patients’ sick notes if they have been found “fit for work” by the notorious work capability assessments (WCA).
Disability-rights activist Linda Burnip describes this government decision as an “ominous sign” for the future of disabled people.
“The change that disabled people were dreading before the election was finally made,” said Ms Burnip, who founded the campaign group Disabled People Against Cuts.
“This is going to make things so difficult for disabled people, it’s going to put them more at risk.” She added.
In a 2018 survey fulfilled by medical magazine Pulse said that total 645 GPs said their patients had been refused welfare benefits, counter to the GPs’ opinion that they were unable to work.
Official DWP figures also reflect this: 68 per cent of employment support allowance (ESA) claimants assessed as fit for work at their initial assessment later successfully had the decision overturned on appeal.
If they found fit for work then the claimants will no longer receive any ESA and must apply for jobseekers’ allowance or universal credit.
Ms Burnip points this exchange of information between the government and doctors as a risky situation.
“To some extent, doctors might as well not exist anymore in relation to benefit claims because they are totally ignored. You have someone who has seven- or eight-years’ training and their opinion counts for nothing,” said Burnip.
The DWP decision comes after PM Boris Johnson said earlier this year that working harder would help people with mental-health disorders.
> Dipto Paul
