Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill

Terry Jermy Excerpts

Committee of the whole House & 3rd reading
Wednesday 9th July 2025 Commons Chamber

[Terry Jermy (South West Norfolk) (Lab)]

I was keen to speak in the debate, to share with hon. Members my own lived experiences of our current welfare system and to explain why I support a number of the amendments.

My dad worked hard from the day he left school, at age 15, right the way through to the age of 55. He was an engineer. He paid his taxes and contributed to society. He never sought help from anyone throughout his life, and he was proud of the work ethic that he stood for. But on 13 August 2013, out of nowhere, he had a life-altering stroke. Overnight he completely lost the use of his left leg and left arm, his hand was almost always in a tight fist, and speech and memory became difficult. Although he had worked for the same engineering company for more than 20 years, his employment contract offered little financial support, and within just a few weeks he was struggling to make ends meet on statutory sick pay. As a family, we had never heard of personal independence payments or of universal credit. My dad did not want to apply, but financial realities meant that we had no choice.

We found a welfare system that was difficult to access. It was confusing, slow—incredibly slow—and at all times we found it frustrating and, frankly, dehumanising. We spent months and months going through the PIP application process, and all the while no financial support was forthcoming and things were tough—very tough. My parents were supported by the local food bank. They borrowed money and got into debt.

Having lived a difficult 10 years following his stroke, fighting against a system that he had paid into for so long, my dad died. In January 2023, having struggled to get a GP appointment, he developed pneumonia. He was placed in a medically induced coma, during which time he had a further stroke from which he never recovered. My dad, like so many others, was let down by the welfare system that was supposed to care for him, and let down by the NHS at the end of his life.

Given my background, the House can perhaps understand why I have found confronting some of the initial proposals in this Bill so difficult. I have seen at first hand how debates in Parliament and rhetoric from hon. Members impact on my own family and on my constituents, particularly with regard to their mental health. It is important that we recognise that disabled people so often feel that they are a burden. They feel that others think that their disability has been somehow manufactured, and that they are benefit cheats. Disabled people are not a burden; it is our privilege to support them.

It has been said of late that Labour is the party of work. Indeed it is, but through that labour we have a responsibility and duty to help others, and it is important that these values are reflected in any proposals. I support the amendments tabled by my hon. Friends the Members for Penistone and Stocksbridge (Dr Tidball), for Walthamstow (Ms Creasy) and for Nottingham East (Nadia Whittome), which seek to ensure that those values are enshrined, because I agree that we absolutely should be doing more to support disabled people into work. Obvious barriers exist, particularly in more rural areas, such as my constituency, where transport options are limited and suitable work opportunities are more difficult to find. Of course we should support disabled people into work, but not by changing the rules and making eligibility for benefits more difficult.

Our public services are broken, and many of my hon. Friends have articulated well how bad things are. Following 14 years of Conservative failure, it should be no surprise that welfare claims are rising. It is the statistical inevitability of the state of our country.

In all the time I spent advocating for my dad at DWP appointments, medical assessments and work capability assessments, I would sit there and think, “What about the people who do not have someone fighting on their behalf? What hope do they have?” Navigating the system was bad enough for our family. What must it be like for others?

In our roles as MPs, we all have a responsibility to advocate for people who do not have a voice. If we want to reduce the welfare bill—I am sure we all want to do so—we must do so by fixing our broken systems. Millions of people are on NHS waiting lists, and many who want to work are not receiving the treatment that would enable them to do so. This Government are making tremendous progress on improving our NHS and healthcare systems, and we need to give that time to bring about the change that we seek. The welfare system is slow, expensive and inefficient, and it is riddled with private profit taking advantage. We must reform that, tackle that and reduce those costs.

Disabled people in this country have suffered disproportionately for years. Austerity and the last Conservative Government ruined lives, and people longed for a changed narrative under Labour. They voted for that change last July. If we are to move forward as a country, we must move forward together, and that includes disabled people.

[Several hon. Members rose—]