Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether diabetes is defined as a disability, and if so, what assessment they have made of the impact of the Welfare Reform and Work Bill on diabetics in the UK.

Under the Equality Act 2010 a person has a disability if he or she has a physical or mental impairment and the impairment has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his or her ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. Diabetes is a long term health condition and how disabling it is for people will vary depending on, amongst other things, severity and how well it is managed. The Government set out its assessment of the impacts of the policies in the Welfare Reform and Work Bill on 20th July. These are available on the Parliament website.