What the main parties are saying about disability

There are 16 million disabled people in the UK – almost a quarter of the population – but many say they have felt “invisible” during this election campaign. The BBC podcast, Access All , asked the main parties about their policies on disability, social care and mental health, and Radio 4’s More or Less examined what they said. The Conservatives want to “reform disability benefits” and tighten up what it calls a “sick-note culture”, saying people are now three times more likely to be assessed as not fit for work than a decade ago.

The party’s manifesto says it would create 60,000 new school places and 15 new specialist schools for children with special educational needs (SEND). It says “mental health should have parity of esteem with physical health” and, as such, it plans to increase the number of clinical placements for those experiencing severe mental illness by 140,000 places. The Conservatives want to cut £12bn from the UK’s £69bn welfare bill.

Disability benefits alone are expected to rise from £39bn to £58bn in 2028/29. Around £14bn of that is due to increasing Personal Independence Payment (PIP) costs, paid to people with long-term physical or mental health conditions who need support with everyday tasks. The manifesto gives little detail on the changes beyond pledging a “more objective” assessment and restrictions on claims from people with mental health problems.

There is currently a 12-week consultation on changes to PIP which prop.