Government sets out Get Britain Working plan alongside £3 billion disability benefit cuts

The government published its plan to "Get Britain Working" through a series of reforms to jobcentres and employment support, the anti-poverty charity Z2K said in a briefing published in December 2024¹. The same autumn budget also included £3 billion of cuts to disability benefits, and a consultation on disability benefits reform is to be held in 2025¹.

Z2K said the employment plans are welcome and "mark a step in the right direction when it comes to supporting disabled people into work", but warned they could be undermined if health and disability benefit reform is approached in the wrong way¹. The government has set an "ambitious target to achieve an 80% employment rate"¹.

The charity set out three tests it says the reforms must meet. First, that the benefits system stops punishing disabled people for trying work: it said its caseworkers regularly see people have disability benefits cut or stopped as a result of being in work, that the quality of disability benefit decision-making is "notoriously poor" with 80% of appeals being successful, and that the risk of support being reduced or stopped acts as a major disincentive¹. Second, that disabled people are not plunged into deep poverty: it cited Trussell data showing 70% of those accessing food parcels are disabled, and said the basic rate of universal credit is "just £91/week"¹. Third, that disabled people's engagement with employment support is voluntary: the white paper "hinted at an expansion of conditionality for disabled people", and Z2K said the current system provides some safeguard against inappropriate sanctions¹.

Z2K also called for the government to set a date for the review of universal credit promised in its manifesto¹. It said research shows removing financial support from disabled people does nothing to boost employment rates, and that sanctions have "virtually no effect" on claimants entering the workforce¹.

Why it matters for households

The briefing concerns working-age disabled people who receive health and disability benefits, and those who claim universal credit while out of work or on a low income. Two changes are in play. The £3 billion of disability benefit cuts were announced at the autumn budget, and a consultation on disability benefits reform is due in 2025, so the detailed rules that will apply to individual claims have not yet been set out¹. Separately, the Get Britain Working white paper covers jobcentres and employment support, and Z2K says it hinted at expanded conditionality for disabled people, which would affect the conditions attached to payments and the risk of sanctions¹.

Z2K's figures put the scale of the household effect in context: 80% of appeals against disability benefit decisions succeed, and 70% of people accessing food parcels are disabled¹. It also notes the basic rate of universal credit stands at £91 a week¹. The briefing does not set out how the £3 billion of cuts would be distributed across specific benefits or claimants, and no start date for the changes has been reported¹.

What happens next

A consultation on disability benefits reform is to be held in 2025¹. Z2K has asked the government to set a date for the universal credit review promised in its manifesto¹. No further dates for the Get Britain Working reforms are given in the briefing¹.

More detail on how these benefits work is in our guide to benefits in the UK, and the wider benefits section covers claims, payments and decisions.