Today the Mail has published an article claiming that one in four claiming sickness benefit have been found fit for work meaning about 227,000 were well enough to come off ESA after having new medical examinations.
The Mail states that a further 346,500 are considered likely to be fit for work at some point and have been placed in an interim, ‘work-related activity’, group. They will be re-tested more often and get support or training to move into employment.
This article, which sees those on benefits as getting “handouts” rather than satisfying a prescribed test for benefits, is timely because Disability Rights UK believes that there should be a rethink of the purpose of the Work Capability Assessment, which is used to test claimants on Employment and Support Allowance.
You can read more about our position in Liz Sayce’s blog at http://disabilityrightsuk.blogspot.co.uk/2013/12/towards-fair-contract-with-disabled.html
Kaliya Franklin, a disability rights campaigner, has written a report which suggests that Government policy has undermined the objectivity of Work Capability Assessments (WCA). She said
“I think we do need to have tests but they need to be fair and independent for everyone. We don’t want a system that is easy to play.”
The Mail article is timely in another way, at is published on the same day that Dr Paul Litchfield is about to issue his fourth independent review of the Work Capability Assessment (WCA).