PM says he has ‘moral’ duty to cut benefits as 1million Brits set to be blocked from health and disability support

SIR Keir Starmer has warned Labour rebels he has a “moral” duty to cut benefits – as it emerged a million will be blocked from health and disability support.

The PM is pushing ahead with £5billion in welfare cuts.

That is despite a Labour civil war brewing over the overhaul.

Thousands of people suffering from mental and physical health conditions are expected to lose out as the main disability benefit, Personal Independence Payments (PIP), will be scaled back.

The changes will include making it harder to qualify for PIP, as around £5 billion of the floated £6 billion in cuts focuses on the disability benefit claimed by 3.6 million people.

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall will unveil the sweeping reforms today, vowing she won’t “shy away” from tough decisions.

But dozens of Labour MPs are in open revolt, with several ministers confronting the PM in Cabinet last week.

Ministers were forced into a U-turn on freezing PIP after the backlash.

Pressure from backbench MPs over the plans has led to this idea being taken off the table.

But The PM’s spokesman said: “I think the Prime Minister has been clear there is both a moral and an economic case for fixing our broken social security system that’s holding our people back, and our country back.”

Under the proposals, one million fewer people will receive health-related benefits by the end of the forecast period, source claimed.

The reforms are also expected to scrap the Work Capability Assessment, the test used to decide who is entitled to extra support, in a drastic overhaul of incapacity benefits.

There could also be a freeze or reduction to the health-related element of Universal Credit, which is a separate benefit, for those with long-term sickness.

This could be accompanied by a boost to the incomes of Universal Credit claimants seeking work.

Labour veteran Diane Abbott hit out at the looming cuts, warning Labour supporters would begin to question the point of the party.

Speaking in the Commons yesterday, Social Security Minister Sir Stephen Timms said the package would look to tackle "incentives to inactivity" in the system.

Although he did not offer details, he said the government's proposed changes would promote more "personalised support" to help those on benefits find employment opportunities.

But he admitted speculation in the run-up to the official announcement had been a source of "anxiety" for claimants.

Sir Stephen added: "I'm sad that that's happened, and that people have been concerned."

The government insists changes are required to reduce ballooning spending on health benefits, which are predicted to continue rising in the coming years.

Total spending on health and disability benefits is forecast to rise from £64.7bn in 2023-24 to £100.7bn in 2029-30.

The biggest contributor to this would be from welfare spending on working-age adults, according to the Office for Budget Responsibility.

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