Opinion: Northants campaigners demand that MPs reverse welfare cuts
Crips Against Cuts Northants Statement on Welfare Cuts Vote.
On Tuesday 1st July, four of Northamptonshire’s five Labour MPs voted in favour of the government’s brutal attacks on disabled people. This chaotic bill looks set to create a two-tier welfare system, thrusting an estimated 150,000 people into poverty. Many disabled people are now in a state of uncertainty. They must wait until Autumn 2026, following a review by the Minister for Social Security and Disability, to learn the full extent of the cuts.
Mike Reader, Lucy Rigby, Gen Kitchen and Rosie Wrighting all came out in favour of slashing access to disability benefits. Many of their constituents - disabled people, carers and other locals - have already voiced their disgust at their MPs for voting for these vicious cuts. These attacks will not be forgotten.
Ahead of the vote, Northampton South MP Mike Reader told the press that personal independence payment (PIP) is “leaving people unable to work, and it rewards people for and [sic] not working.” Crips Against Cuts Northants rejects these claims. PIP is not an unemployment benefit. Many disabled people rely on their payments to support them to stay in work. PIP and the Universal Credit disability payment are already insufficient to cover many people’s needs. However, they offer a vital lifeline that Mike Reader and his colleagues are only too happy to tear up.
Corby and East Northamptonshire MP Lee Barron is the only Labour politician in the region with the decency to stand up and vote against the cuts. We thank him for this. Sarah Bool, the Tory MP for South Northamptonshire, voted against the cuts with the majority of her party, while Daventry’s Stuart Andrew did not vote. The Conservative Party opposed the welfare bill on the basis that the cuts are not harsh enough. They want to see more money stripped from disability benefits.
Over the past few weeks, the government has been forced to repeatedly scale back the severity of the cuts, including one U-turn just hours before the vote. These concessions show that there is power in organising and fighting back. Crips Against Cuts Northants will continue to fight for a fair and just welfare system that meets the needs of all who use it.
We demand that all local MPs take action to reverse the cuts and to build a decent, working welfare system for all.