NEW: Last night 86 charities came together to stand with disabled people and their organisations in calling for MPs to vote against the UC & PIP Bill proceeding 👇
Ayaz Manji
@ayaz_manji
Campaigner, policy person, and welfare rights adviser. Currently freelance. Previously working on social security for @TrussellUK & @MindCharity. He/him
- Ahead of Liz Kendall’s speech today – a quick thread on why the welfare state isn’t collapsing and why deep cuts to disability benefits aren’t the answer. (1/9)
- It's important for anyone considering this 'olive branch' to be clear that it's made from three policies which the Government already announced three months ago. (1/5)EXCL: Ministers to offer mutinous Labour MPs an olive branch on government’s welfare plans to help avert major rebellion in crucial vote early next month. 1/ Hundreds of thousands of people who will no longer qualify for Pip will continue to receive payments for 13 weeks 2/ The
- With just over a week to go until MPs vote on the biggest cuts to social security in a decade, there's been a concerted ad campaign to sell these cuts to politicians and the wider public. A quick thread of some of the figures that have been left out. 👇
- In the coming days, we'll continue to hear the government say that the welfare state is at brink of collapse and that cuts are the only answer. The evidence tells a different story.
00:00 - NEW: Analysis published by Trussell and WPI Economics today finds that planned cuts would put 440,000 people in disabled households at risk of needing to turn to a food bank. If the UK government doesn't change course, then this will be their legacy. 👇
- Okay parliament is back today. And it's prompted me to get on with a thread I've been thinking about on parliamentary deadlines for campaigners.
- When we talk about 'protections' in the UC and PIP bill - it's important to be clear that they don't prevent *a single disabled person* receiving Universal Credit from having their support cut. The impact assessments published today make that clear. 👇
- To put this into context, the Government has a working majority of 165, which means that this motion would pass if 84 Labour MPs and all opposition MPs supported it. Nothing's a foregone conclusion, but with a week left to go until the vote, this is a real sign of hope.BREAKING - I understand a large number of MPs - potentially 80+ and including select committee chair are signing a reasoned amendment to the welfare bill which declines to give it a second reading
- Tomorrow we’re expecting the Government to publish a bill that would bring in the biggest cuts to social security in a decade. But the story that this is the only way to make the system sustainable doesn’t stack up. Cuts are a political choice and we have alternatives. 👇Ahead of Liz Kendall’s speech today – a quick thread on why the welfare state isn’t collapsing and why deep cuts to disability benefits aren’t the answer. (1/9)
