Asked by: Polly Billington (Labour - East Thanet)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of people who receive (a) enhanced daily living Personal Independence Payment awards and (b) standard daily living Personal Independence Payment awards did not score four or more points on any individual activity descriptor in 2024-25.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Information on the proportion of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) claimants who received a standard Daily Living award rate and scored less than four points in all daily living activities can be found in Table 1 below.
There will be no immediate changes. Our intention is the changes will start to come into effect from November 2026 for PIP, subject to parliamentary approval. After that date, no one will lose PIP without first being reassessed by a trained assessor or healthcare professional, who assesses individual needs and circumstance. Reassessments happen on average every 3 years. Someone who didn’t score 4 points in an activity in a previous assessment may well score 4 points in a future assessment – not least as many conditions tend to get worse, not better, over time.
Table 1: Proportion of PIP claimants who are in receipt of the standard daily living award rate and scored less than four points in all daily living activities
Daily Living Award | Proportion of PIP claimants who scored <4 points |
Enhanced | 13% |
Standard | 87% |
Source(s): PIP administrative data
Notes:
Asked by: Polly Billington (Labour - East Thanet)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people who receive (a) enhanced daily living Personal Independence Payment awards and (b) standard daily living Personal Independence Payment awards did not score four or more points on any individual activity descriptor in 2024-25.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Information on the volume of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) claimants who received a standard Daily Living award rate and scored less than four points in all daily living activities can be found in Table 1 below.
The number of people currently on PIP and did not score 4 points in one category in their last assessment should not be equated with the number who are likely to lose PIP. It’s important to make a clear distinction between the two, not least because we don’t want constituents to be unnecessarily fearful about their situation, when we understand many are already anxious.
No one will lose access to PIP immediately. The changes, subject to parliamentary approval, would be brought in from November 2026. After that date, no one will lose PIP without first being reassessed by a trained assessor or healthcare professional, who assesses individual needs and circumstance. Reassessments happen on average every 3 years. Someone who didn’t score 4 points in an activity in a previous assessment may well score 4 points in a future assessment – not least as many conditions tend to get worse, not better, over time.
After taking account of behavioural changes, the OBR predicts that 370,000 people who will be receiving PIP at the point of implementation of the four point requirement in November 2026, will lose their PIP Daily Living entitlement by 2029/30. Of all PIP recipients at the point of implementation, 9 in 10 will not lose PIP during the subsequent 3 years from this change.
We are consulting on how best to support those who are affected by the new eligibility changes, including how to make sure health and eligible care needs are met. PIP is not based on condition diagnosis but on functional disability as the result of one or more conditions, and is awarded as a contribution to the additional costs which result.
We have launched a wider review of the PIP assessment which I will lead, and we will bring together a range of experts, stakeholders and people with lived experience to consider how best to do this and to start the process as part of preparing for a review. We will provide further details as plans progress.
Even with these reforms, the overall number of people on PIP and DLA is expected to rise by 750,000 by the end of this parliament and spending will rise from £23bn in 24/25 to £31bn in 29/30.
Table 1: Volume of PIP claimants who are in receipt of the standard daily living award rate and scored less than four points in all daily living activities
Daily Living Award | Volume of PIP claimants who scored <4 points |
Enhanced | 203,000 |
Standard | 1,121,000 |
Source(s): PIP administrative data
Notes: