Pat McFadden, secretary of state for work and pensions, has revealed that the Timms review will issue its interim report before the parliamentary recess. He also confirmed that the review has the power to recommend cuts to personal independence payment (PIP) and that he had personally asked them to look at “conditions like anxiety and depression, neurodiverse conditions and so on”.
McFadden was addressing the Commons Work and Pensions committee on 17 June.
On the timing of the review, he explained that there are “two very important reviews under way”: the Milburn report on young people and the Timms review.
“I expect an interim report from the Timms review before the summer recess. Both reviews will give final reports before the end of the year. Depending on their conclusions, which I do not want to anticipate too much here, if legislative change is needed, it will come after that.”
The last day the House sits before the summer recess is Thursday, 16 July.
McFadden went on to confirm that the Timms review could recommend cuts to PIP, but not big increases:
“In the terms of reference, we were sending a signal to the reviewers not to come forward with a big, increasing cost package. There is nothing to stop them coming forward with measures that reduce costs, but we did not want them to come forward with a review that simply says, “Let’s pay much more into the system.”
McFadden also revealed for the first time that he had personally asked members of the review to look at certain conditions:
“In particular, there has been an increase in conditions like anxiety and depression, neurodiverse conditions and so on. Is this benefit fit for purpose in the way that it is designed, in dealing with that variety of conditions? That is a very interesting question for the reviewers. When I went to speak to them a few months ago in one of their sessions, that is the question I put to them to consider.”
On the day after McFadden’s appearance before the committee, a Conservative peer put forward a private members bill that would end awards of the standard rate of PIP for claimants with a primary condition of anxiety, depression or ADHD.
The bill has no chance of becoming law, but it demonstrates a growing political consensus on reducing the cost of PIP awards for anxiety, depression and neurodiversity.
You can read the full transcript of the work and pensions committee meeting or watch it on Parliament TV
