A Route out of Poverty? CPAG questions whether welfare reform can work

Many disabled people want to work but much more must be done to remove the barriers in their way if the Government’s plans to move a million incapacity benefit claimants into work are to succeed, a report published by the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) says today.

A Route out of Poverty? Disabled people, work and welfare reform draws on interviews with a number of disabled parents who have tried to find paid employment and sends a stark message to Ministers as they prepare to publish their Welfare Reform Bill.

Launching the report, CPAG’s Chief Executive Kate Green said:

“Many disabled people want to work, but they need to be given much more support if the government’s plans are to succeed. The message from the disabled parents in our report is that they still face discrimination from both employers and society as a whole.

“What disabled parents really need is the removal of the barriers in their way of securing and holding down a job and more help with childcare and transport costs. Forcing disabled people to find work with the threat of benefit sanctions is unnecessary and could be counterproductive.”

The report notes the clear link between disability and poverty: 40 per cent of children with a disabled parent live below the poverty line.

“Although the reformed incapacity benefit will mean more money for some, financial support for disabled people must be higher if they and their children are to be lifted out of poverty. For those who can work, employment is not always a route out of poverty with many disabled people finding themselves in poor quality, low paid and unsustainable jobs,” Kate Green added.

“Questions remain about whether decent jobs will be available and whether the DWP has sufficient resources to deliver the key part of their welfare reform plans, the nationwide roll out of Pathways to Work.

“Unless these challenges are overcome the link between disability and poverty cannot be broken and welfare reform won’t work.”

The report concludes that if welfare reform is to be a success:

• The Government must ensure that good quality jobs are available to allow disabled people to fulfil their potential and which reflect their skill levels.
• Much more work needs to be done to overcome discrimination in society at large, and among employers in particular.
• Significant investment in support – not benefit sanctions – is a prerequisite of success.
• An adequate financial safety net to prevent poverty must be provided for disabled people who are unable to work, or who are severely disadvantaged in the labour market.
• The additional costs of being a disabled person with parenting responsibilities must be recognised and addressed.

Notes to Editors:

1. Edited by CPAG’s Policy and Research Officer Gabrielle Preston, A Route out of Poverty? Disabled people, work and welfare reform includes contributions from Disability Rights Commission Chair Bert Massie, Guy Palmer from the New Policy Institute, Tania Burchardt from the London School of Economics, Hugh Stickland of the Department for Work and Pensions and Richard Olsen from Leicester University.

For further information from CPAG please contact:
Alex Belardinelli
CPAG Press Officer
Tel. 020 7812 5216 or 07816 909302
abelardinelli@cpag.org.uk