‘PIP claimants should no longer be seen as thieves and thieves’

A former nurse who was rejected personal independence payment (PIP) despite having a life-changing condition, the government has said it needs to urgently rethink the way society views them benefit recipients.

Gitanjali Gordon, 53, from Blackpool, said i the Budget must support vulnerable people who rely on benefits such as PIP, rather than demonizing them and “treating them like thugs and thieves”.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves warned earlier this year that “difficult decisions” would come welfare expenditure in its autumn budget, and speculation is rife about possible cuts to disability benefits and reforms.

Mrs Gordon, a mother of two, applied for PIP in August 2022 when she was diagnosed achalasia, a rare and incurable condition of the esophagus, which makes it difficult for her to swallow food and drink.

Ms Gordon says doctors told her her nervous system was so badly damaged it “was like she had been in a car accident”.

She told assessors that the seizure-like symptoms meant she was too scared to go outside and was virtually housebound.

When assessors asked her what she would do if she had to go somewhere, she told them that she would use a taxi if she had to go somewhere urgently.

She was later told that her PIP application had been submitted had been rejected because it was felt that she was not sufficiently ill if she could get into a taxi.

Ms Gordon, who worked in healthcare for more than 15 years, including as an operating room nurse in Kolkata, India, before coming to live in Britain in 2002, challenged the decision in January 2023 but it was not reviewed.

Mrs. Gordon told it i that it would be unfair benefit recipientssuch as those on PIP, which should be included in the budget as they are among the poorest and most vulnerable in society.

“There are so many people who are on PIP or who have been rejected from PIP, who are suffering in silence and are afraid to say anything,” she said. “Anyone who has health problems and needs a safety net should not feel this way.

“My condition is not going well at all. I am in a lot of pain and have to take strong painkillers. Because I was rejected for PIP, I have to rely on my family to help me.”

Ms Gordon says that while cuts to the economy need to be made, tightening the disability benefits system would be the wrong move.

“It’s unfair to go after it vulnerable people using PIP or other benefits because the reason these people claim is that they cannot work properly and do not have enough finances to survive on,” she said.

“The only reason they are on PIP is because they can’t afford not to.

“It’s not easy having to ask for money in the first place, and people wouldn’t do it unless they had to because it makes them feel unworthy and guilty.

“If the government believes it needs to get money back into the economy, it should go after rich companies that dodge taxes – not take money from poor people.”

Ms Gordon says there is a stereotypical attitude in society that people on benefits are “scroungers”, and she believes the Government is fueling this stigma further with suggestions that benefits should be cut.

“It is not easy to claim or apply for PIP,” she says. “There’s a lot of paperwork involved, it’s quite complicated and it requires a lot of evidence – and even if you provide it, you’ll still be rejected.

“This makes life very difficult for people who are already ill and perhaps disabled and struggling financially.

“The whole culture around PIP makes people feel guilty for claiming it in the first place, and there seems to be a view from within society that anyone who relies on PIP or other benefits are scroungers.

“The government is also contributing to this with its attitude to benefits and telling people they will check them and plunder their bank accounts. This is treating someone like a thief and that is wrong.

“If the government, which promises to support vulnerable people, talks about and treats people on benefits in this way, what hope do people have for the way the rest of society views them?

“There needs to be a change in the way people on benefits are viewed. There needs to be more compassion and they need to be treated with dignity and respect.”

This was announced by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). i that Ms Gordon’s application for PIP was rejected because she was not eligible.

They stated that the use of public transport is not taken into account in PIP and that the award decision was based solely on assessment.

The DWP added that PIP is awarded based on the impact of the circumstances on the claimant and is intended to cover additional living costs incurred as a result of the health condition.

It states that anyone who disagrees with the mandatory reconsideration decision can appeal to an independent tribunal.