The following details have been supplied by the TUC:
People with serious illnesses are being found 'fit to work' under new sickness benefits tests, disability charities have warned. The MS Society, Parkinson's UK, National Aids Trust, Arthritis Care, the Forward-ME group and Crohn's and Colitis UK are calling for changes to make the test 'fairer' for people with illnesses where symptoms vary over time. The Work Capability Assessment (WCA), currently being used for first-time claimants, is being reviewed. The test is also in the process of being rolled out to the 2.6 million people already claiming disability benefits. Government figures indicate threequarters of new claimants are either found fit for work or abandon their claims. A pilot study which used WCA to reassess existing incapacity benefit claimants found 30 per cent fit for work. But 40 per cent of new claimants challenging their assessments win their appeals, which employment and disability campaigners says demonstrates the tests are unsatisfactory. The charities recommend 12 changes to the current WCA, including amending wording of the test to ask whether claimants can complete 'activities reliably, repeatedly and safely', 'within a reasonable amount of time', and 'without significant discomfort, breathlessness or fatigue'. The report also says the severity and frequency of symptoms should be taken into account by assessors. Simon Gillespie, chief executive of the MS Society, said: 'As charities, we have been inundated by concerns from people living with a long-term health condition who've wrongly been found fit to work. Many of them want to work, but may require extra support to do so. Ensuring that the assessment is fair and consistent is therefore a vital task.' Thousands took to the streets of London on 11 May to protest at disability and sickness benefit changes, including ESA and incapacity benefit-related cuts, which will leave many people with disabilities considerably worse off.
