AFTER months of speculation, Rachel Reeves today unveiled her Spring Statement with welfare cuts galore - and we caught up with some Sun readers to see how they’ll be affected.
The Chancellor confirmed in Parliament that Universal Credit incapacity benefits for new claimants will be frozen until 2030, and that there will be tighter restrictions on claiming Personal Independence Payments (PIP).
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It comes as public finances face a squeeze to help balance the books after disappointing growth and ballooning borrowing costs.
The Chancellor announced today that the changes to welfare will save £4.9billion.
The government is planning to scrap Universal Credit Work Capability Assessments by 2028, so all health payments will be made via PIP.
Under-22s will also be banned from claiming Universal Credit incapacity benefits.
Read more on benefits
But the government hasn't confirmed many of the details of how PIP will be assessed, leaving millions who currently get the benefit feeling anxious and worried.
So how are our readers expecting today’s Spring Statement to affect them?
Key announcements in the Spring Statement:
No new tax rises:The Chancellor ruled out further tax hikes and pledged to crack down on tax avoidance, aiming to raise an extra £1bn.
Growth downgraded for 2025:The OBR halved its GDP growth forecast for next year from 2% to just 1%.
Growth boost from planning reforms: New housing policies expected to raise GDP by 0.6 per cent over the next decade.
House building surge: 1.3 million homes expected over five years, with construction hitting a 40-year high.
£2.2bn extra for defence:Additional funding confirmed to help meet the 2.5 per cent of GDP defence target.
£400m Defence Innovation Fund: Backing new tech like drones and AI for the front line.
Welfare shake-up:Targeted employment support and welfare reform to reduce benefit spending.
Civil service cuts:New voluntary exit schemes and AI tools to shrink Government.
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Living wage working family react to the Spring Statement
Special needs son
Annette Mitchell, 44, and her partner Marco, 40, live in Slough where they have a mortgage on their own home.
They have three kids - Agatha, 11, Lawrence, 10, and their youngest, Wilfred, 7, who has a stoma bag and receives a monthly Disability Allowance of £360.
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Marco currently works as an administrator for a film school in Ealing, where he earns £34,000 a year, while Annette isn’t currently working.
Currently, the family receive £400 a month in Universal Credit.
Annette says: “Wilfred was very ill in hospital with Ulcerative Colitis and eventually had his colon removed and a stoma bag fitted. We don't have a motability car but we do have a blue badge and it really helped with all the hospital visits.
“We used to get child tax credits, and when they stopped, we were told to apply for Universal Credit instead.
“When we were in London we suffered some trauma. After that and what Wilfred went through in hospital, we decided I wouldn’t work and would be a full-time mum.
“I’m well educated, I was actually doing my PhD when I found out I was pregnant with our eldest. But what I’d lose if I went back to work would be time with my children.
I know people with a kid with Downs Syndrome, and they need genuine help, but others just play the game.
Annette Mitchell
“I can’t just stick Wilfred in a breakfast club and head off to work either. He has additional needs, and when he was in hospital, it would have been impossible for me to have worked full time.
“As a mum, you're never going to get that time back. I don't want money in my bank, I want time with my children.
“But I do think people are taking advantage of the system. They seem desperate to get their autism or ADHD diagnosed because it’s an easy way to get an awful lot of extra money.
“You talk to people and they tell you to tell the government you have mental health problems and you get a car and loads of money. You’ve got parents at school with five kids, all of them with some kind of diagnosis, and they’re pulling in £3k per month from benefits.
“Our little one gets DLA (Disabled Living Allowance) and people were telling me all the buzzwords I needed for the forms. If you know the system, people know how to game it.
"I know people with a kid with Downs Syndrome, and they need genuine help, but others just play the game.”
Unemployed mum with kids
MUM Saffron Powell, who is on Universal Credit, is struggling to find work because of the demands of looking after her seven-year-old daughter, Trilani.
“I used to model for ASOS but when I fell pregnant with my second child I had to stop. It's a very demanding job. You get a call and you have to be at work within half an hour. It was becoming impossible, so in 2022, I had to leave.
“I find it difficult to not be working, and I always wanted to work, but it's hard to get the kids into nursery school. I spoke with nurseries who wanted over £100 per week, and another £75 per week just for food for my youngest.
“The jobs I was applying for were asking me to start at 8am, which was too early to do the school run.
“My youngest starts nursery this year and I’m already looking for jobs. Even with her free nursery place though, it's not easy to find a job with the hours that allow me to get both my kids to school and nursery.
“I need a starting time after 9am. They make it hard for people. It's not easy at all. I’d love a work from home job, but they don’t seem to offer that for new roles.”
Disabled mum of three
Mum of three Angela Armin, 54, suffers from uveitis, a rare condition that has resulted in partial blindness in both eyes.
She struggles to see and needs a guide dog to help her get around from her home in Havering, Greater London.
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She was first diagnosed with the condition in 2005 and now receives around £600 a month in Personal Independence Payments (PIP), which is a benefit to support people suffering from a long-term illness, disability or mental health condition.
PIP is split into two parts - a living allowance and another payment for mobility - Angela receives both parts.
But she believes the process of applying for PIP has to change as the government has confirmed a huge shake-up to benefits.
Angela told The Sun: "The biggest problem is exploiting the system... it’s so easy to exploit.
"It’s so easy for people to convince people they have mental health issues.
"The genuine people are the ones that are suffering.
"People that genuinely need help aren’t getting it."
There is no consistency. Where’s the logic?
Angela Armin
Angela is worried that she will be required to reapply for PIP.
She pointed out the huge disconnection between hospitals and medical authorities and the benefits system, which results in a difficult and frustrating experience for claimants.
She said: "Most people who have long term disabilities have been seen by a hospital.
"But then you’ve got to go for an assessment at the job centre you're sat there for an hour answering the same questions by someone in an admin role, for them to come to the same conclusions."
The 54-year-old added that she has previously been tasked with filling out 40-page documents to carry on receiving her benefit payments.
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"Filling out a form is difficult for me but i've seen top consultants at top eye hospitals who have written reports on my condition," she said.
"There is no consistency. Where’s the logic?"
Living wage working family
DAN Scarfe, 38, and his wife Emma, 34, both work in care homes earning the Living Wage.
Dan does the night shift and Emma works during the day. They have two young sons, Oliver, seven and Luke, five.
He is a night carer in a care home on £14,500a year, working 25 hours per week.
Emma works at a care home in the day, earning £19,500for 37 hours a week.
The Living Wage is going up six per cent – that’s 77p an hour – from £11.44 to £12.21 next month.
That means Dan’s income will go up by £1,000 per year.
Dan, of Ipswich, Suffolk, says: “With everything going up, we can't complain about that. As it was, we were just managing to take the kids away on holidays.
“It's our tenth wedding anniversary this year. Now we can afford to do something special. Have a little trip away. It's that kind of thing.
“Usually with the Budget it's a couple of a hundred pounds here or there, which is fine. But £1,000 is a substantial amount of money.”
Emma’s salary is also increasing so the family income will rise by £2,482.
Dan says: “If Emma gets it as well, we will really feel a huge benefit. That's something you really notice.
“That’s more than a holiday for us. We do our holidays with a savvy mindset. We’d get way more out of that. A couple of holidays this year, or a couple of grand to pay the mortgage off.”
As well as the Living Wage rise, the couple’s bosses will also have to pay extra employers National Insurance – up 1.2per cent.
Dan says: “Personally I'm not concerned because we always need people in care work.
“But in general, with everything going up, businesses are potentially going to struggle.
“It's a lot of money for them to find. If they’re not getting any other help, then the business. Now it's more expensive with no gain.
“You don't want to see more shops close. We don't want that to carry on. You want everyone to get more money because everything is going up in costs.”
