We're launching our campaign against benefit cuts
The UK government has announced the biggest cut in disability support for a decade. We want to stop this attack on income for working age people with Parkinson's and their families. But we can't do it without you.
Government plans
The government’s plans to cut at least £5 billion from disabled social security have shocked many people, including some in Parliament.
Our greatest concern is for people with young onset Parkinson’s, who need to know what this might mean for them and their families.
What's changing and why?
The government says it will get sick and disabled people into employment by restricting eligibility to Personal Independence Payment (PIP), and halving and freezing the health element of Universal Credit (UC).
The changes to UC are set to begin from April 2026 and PIP changes will start from November 2026.
The UC changes will affect people across the UK. The PIP changes will affect people in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
We believe these plans could potentially push thousands of working age people with Parkinson’s and their families into serious financial difficulty.
Our concerns about the proposals:
- Dangerous and counterproductive. PIP is a contribution towards the unavoidable extra cost of being sick or disabled. It can cover costs such as prescriptions, travel or the extra heating someone might need. It is wrong to suggest that taking this support away from someone with Parkinson’s will make them more likely to be able to work. We think the opposite is true.
- Lack of clarity. The government says that people with the 'severest life-long conditions' will be supported and won't be regularly reassessed for PIP. However, it hasn't defined what it means by this and how it will decide who is in this group.
- No full public consultation. While the public is being consulted about some proposals, the most significant plans to cut PIP will be decided by MPs. And worse still, MPs will vote on these plans before the government’s justification for the cuts is published.
What we can do, together
We've signed a joint letter to the chancellor with dozens of health and disability organisations urging a stop to the cuts.
We've also written to Stephen Timms, Minister for Social Security and Disability, asking to meet with him urgently.
And we're planning the next meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Group in Parkinson’s later this month to share the impact of the cuts on people with Parkinson’s.
Join our campaign to stop these cuts and sign our open letter.
We plan to hand this letter in to the Department for Work and Pensions in June.
We recognise that the government faces difficult decisions in a rapidly changing world. But no evidence or logic has been provided for the government’s proposals that will see hundreds of thousands of people worse off.
We'll share more about how you can get involved in our campaign in the coming weeks. In the meantime, please:
Get advice and support
From benefits and grants to loans and other support, there is support out there. And we can help you find what’s available to you.
Our team of trained advisers can give you information and advice on how to access benefits.