Scope's response to the chancellor's 2023 spring statement

James Taylor, executive director of strategy at disability equality charity Scope, said:

“The government is redrawing the welfare system in this country, and they’ve made many, many mistakes when they’ve done this in the past.

“Disabled people and charities have long-called for the separation of benefits and employment support, but to work we need to make sure people are in the right group because sanctions are being ramped up.

“With the welcome scrapping of the Work Capability Assessment, the government must make sure it doesn’t replace one out of touch test with another.

“We know that you can’t sanction disabled people into work, and it’s reassuring that the Universal Support scheme will be voluntary.

“The government has got a mountain to climb to win back the trust of disabled people. For far too long, disabled people have been faced with degrading benefits assessments, cruel sanctions and a dearth of tailored support to find suitable jobs.

“Disabled people face major barriers getting into work, such as discrimination from employers and long delays getting the right support. There is much work for the government to do to get this right and rebuild trust.”