Disabled People: Disability Living Allowance

Baroness Hollis of Heigham Excerpts

Monday 7th February 2011 Lords Chamber

[Lord Freud]

My Lords, as the noble Baroness pointed out, the target is to reduce the spending on DLA by 20 per cent by 2014-15. But that is against a projection of a benefit that is, frankly, out of control. The actual figure in that year will basically come down to the level that it was in 2009-10, which is just below the £12 billion mark.

[Baroness Hollis of Heigham]

My Lords, the consultation paper proposes that the three rates of DLA should be so-called “simplified” into two rates, which presumably implies—as the noble Baroness, Lady Campbell, suggested—the scrapping of the lower rate of DLA care. Lower-rate DLA care goes to those with significant need of help or supervision. Does the Minister agree with the noble Baroness that if the Government go ahead with that, it will take almost £900 million—nearly £1 billion—out of the incomes of disabled people, some of whom are among the poorest in this country? Is that what he means by saying that we are all in it together?

[Lord Freud]

My Lords, I disagree entirely with that premise. The personal independence payment is a new assessment of people’s needs and is designed to help people to live independent lives and to give them mobility. To that extent there can be no presumption about what is happening to existing rates. We will set these rates based on people’s requirements to live independent lives.