Guardian News and Media/London
Thousands of cancer patients will lose up to £191 a year because of the government’s plans to allow benefits to rise more slowly than living costs despite ministerial assurances that this cut would not affect disabled people.
Charities and experts have warned that the 20,000 cancer patients who receive employment and support allowance (ESA) would lose between £138 and £191 a year by 2015 under the proposals.
In total over the next three years, cancer patients would lose an estimated £6mn in ESA payments, says Macmillan Cancer Support.
The figures come as peers prepare to scrutinise the welfare benefits uprating bill, which caps a range of working-age benefits at 1% until 2015. The current inflation rate is 2.7%.
Ciarn Devane, chief executive of Macmillan, said: “We’re deeply concerned about the impact the welfare benefits uprating bill will have on cancer patients especially as the government has pledged to protect them from this legislation.
“The proposed changes to employment and support allowance, which represent a real-terms cut, will further penalise vulnerable cancer patients at a time they can least afford it. We’re urging lords to protect cancer patients from these cuts by exempting all components of ESA from the legislation. Cancer is the toughest fight many people will have to face. The government should not be making it tougher for them.”
Labour said the charity’s figures understated the problem as by 2015 the department for work and pensions (DWP) expected the caseload of cancer patients collecting ESA to grow to 42,200.
Liam Byrne, the shadow welfare and pensions secretary, said the average loss in 2015 would be at least £156 a year “thanks to Osborne’s political games”.
Byrne said: “The government’s strivers’ tax bill gets worse and worse. First we found out that 7mn working families will be hit and now we know they have tried to conceal the impact on cancer patients as well. The priorities of this government are clear. They are cutting support for cancer patients whilst cutting taxes for millionaires.”
The system of allowances pays out a basic rate, worth about £70 a week, and then sifts cancer patients into two groups depending on how close they might be to working in the future, with support for those deemed unable to work worth around an extra £30 a week.
The DWP said those considered the most debilitated would not see their £30 “support group” payment affected, but conceded that the basic £70 a week payout would be.