Contentious new proposals have come to light to transform the DWP’s PIP benefit, suggesting the controversial move of ending payments for mental health conditions and focusing support only on physical disabilities. Newly disclosed figures show that of the total 3.66 million Personal Independence Payment claims, a significant 1.4 million (38%) are related to mental health issues.
Since 2013, there’s been a surge of over 40% in spending on incapacity and disability benefits, hitting £64.7 billion—a sum that accounts for 22% of all health expenditure. Projections warn of an increase to £100.7 billion by 2029-30, pointing to a welfare bill that could top £370 billion.
Amid these statistics and anticipated reforms, Labour is primed to announce a major overhaul of disability and incapacity benefits this spring. With the Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall facing deadlines, the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee has called for swift action, strongly stating: “We see no reason to delay action.”
The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), with its centre-right stance, is advocating for a halt on Personal Independence Payment (PIP) benefits linked to mental health conditions, proposing instead more focused support measures. The CSJ points out that the sharp rise in mental health-related claims is contributing to the increased economic inactivity.
According to recent figures from the CSJ, new PIP claims for mental health as the primary condition have shot up by 209 per cent. Additionally, there has been a notable climb in young people out of the workforce due to long-term sickness—a 29 per cent rise among those aged 16-24 and a 42 per cent increase in the 25 to 34 age group since 2019, reports Birmingham Live.
Mental illness has resulted in the sharpest rise in long-term sickness cases, surging by about 20,000, which is close to a 24 per cent increase.
A revealing survey conducted by the CSJ indicates that nearly half (48 per cent) of the public are in favour of providing “benefits-in-kind” instead of cash payments to individuals with mild mental ill-health symptoms, while only 18 per cent support direct financial assistance. PIP payments, currently ranging from £114.80 to £737.20 every four weeks, are scheduled to go up to £116.80 and £749.80 from April 2025.
In the recent ‘Change the Prescription’ report, the think tank calls for an increase in the digital consent age from 13 to 16, a push for smartphone bans in schools, and the introduction of a licensing system for mobile phone sales and marketing. The report points out that regular social media use can make individuals 1.7 times more susceptible to mental health issues than those who don’t use such platforms.
Amidst serious concerns, the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) is pressuring famous platforms like Instagram and Snapchat to boost their measures against the sharing of self-harm and eating disorder content, especially targeting vulnerable users. A particularly alarming trend has been observed in hospital admissions due to self-harm among young girls, with figures quadrupling by 2022.
Sophia Worringer, Deputy Policy Director at CSJ, said: “We have a deeply unhappy generation, amplified by the cancer of social media, whose childhood spent online is threatening their adulthood. Added to this is the ballooning welfare bill, with more young people than ever going straight from education onto long-term sickness benefits.
“Unless we act now to increase the age of digital consent to 16 and ban algorithms for users under 16, our forecasts show that one-quarter of all UK children will suffer from a mental disorder by 2030. This is a national emergency, and we need to act now.”
The report highlights the trend of over-medicalising life’s ups and downs, noting that one in five adults in England is now prescribed antidepressants. A Savanta survey commissioned by the CSJ reveals a worrying perspective among GPs: 84 per cent believe everyday life challenges are being medicalised, and a shocking 83 per cent think antidepressants are dispensed too readily when other non-medical treatments could be more suitable.
Similarly, 85 per cent of doctors surveyed believe the root cause is the lack of alternative interventions to medication. The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) has criticised the UK’s approach to mental health, suggesting an excessive readiness to label people with mental health conditions when they might simply be feeling miserable or lonely.
It has been disclosed that only three out of the nation’s 49 health trusts actually define what constitutes mental health, with psychiatrists acknowledging the subjective nature of diagnoses.
The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) has sounded the alarm in their latest report, highlighting concerns about the over-medicalisation of mental health issues. They caution: “In a desire to support and enable individuals to have positive mental health, there is a danger that the pendulum has swung too far and that the boundaries between distress and disorder have become blurred. This is not compassionate. It risks those who are unwell missing out on the treatment they deserve, and it risks burdening others with unhelpful labels that can hold them back without addressing the root cause of their very real needs.”
Labour MP and seasoned GP Dr Simon Opher has teamed up with Conservative Danny Kruger MP and the esteemed crossbench peer, ex-NHS England boss Lord Nigel Crisp, to pen a foreword for a report. They address the issues arising from the ‘Dr Google’ trend: “Patients increasingly diagnose themselves on the internet and present their symptoms to the doctor in overtly psychological terms. For instance, describing vague feelings of unease or low mood as anxiety or depression.
“It is time the medical profession adopted treatment options beyond the prescription pad for symptoms of mild to moderate mental ill-health. We must push back at this costly and ineffective over-medicalisation, stop labelling mild transient feelings in terms of major psychiatric conditions and offer patients compassionate and practical support to feel better.”