PIP CLAIMANTS REACH RECORD 4.1 MILLION, FIGURES SHOW

The number of people claiming Personal Independence Payment has reached a record 4.1 million, according to official figures from the Department for Work and Pensions. The total marks a two per cent rise from 4.01 million between May and July. The increase comes as the government prepares sweeping changes to the benefit later this year. Personal Independence Payment, known as Pip, is currently under review by social security minister Stephen Timms, whose final report is expected to go to the government in the autumn. Interim findings published earlier this year concluded the benefit is "not fit for purpose", the DWP said.

Early recommendations from the review, published this month, point to more face-to-face assessments and vouchers for specific costs rather than the current lump-sum cash payments, according to the department. DWP figures show spending on health-related benefits is estimated at £77.1 billion for 2025/26, up from £36 billion in 2019/20. Over the same period, the number of Pip claimants has doubled from around 2 million to the current record of 4.1 million, the figures show. Separate DWP data shows claims for the health-related element of universal credit rose to 3.6 million in June, up 23 per cent, or 680,000, over the year.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has committed to reducing Britain's welfare bill. His official spokesperson said the government's position was to "get serious as a country about welfare reform" without "crude cuts that simply push people into crisis and create bigger costs elsewhere". Stephen Timms's review was ordered last year after ministers dropped earlier proposals to tighten Pip's assessment criteria. Those proposals, which would have cut welfare spending by around £5 billion, prompted more than 100 Labour MPs to threaten to rebel against the government.