Within hours of the High Court finding that a Conservative consultation on changes to the work capability assessment (WCA) was unlawful, Labour has announced it will “re-consult on the descriptor changes”.
Earlier today, we reported that the High Court had found that a consultation on changes to the WCA by the Tories in September 2023 “was so unfair as to be unlawful.”
The judge held that the DWP had: failed to adequately explain the proposals; had failed to explain that the main purpose was to save money rather than to get claimants into work; had failed to provide sufficient time for the consultation.
Following the now outlawed consultation, the Conservatives announced that they would save £3 billion by making three major changes to the WCA.
These were:
Mobilising: the points would be unchanged, but the highest scoring descriptor would no longer give claimants limited capability for work-related activity (LCWRA).
Getting about: the highest scoring descriptor would still give limited capability for work (LCW), but the scores for the other descriptors would be reduced.
Substantial risk for LCWRA: this would be unchanged for physical health. But for mental health the criteria would be made much stricter.
At the same time, the Conservatives said that a “Chance to Work Guarantee” would mean that they would “abolish the WCA for the vast majority” of current claimants with LCWRA, thereby “giving people the confidence to try work”.
When Labour came to power in July 2024, they confirmed that they would be reforming or abolishing the WCA, but have refused to give any further details.
However, they fought the judicial challenge to the Tories consultation as if it were their own consultation that was being challenged.
And now, within hours of the High Court decision, the Guardian has reported a government spokesperson as saying:
“The judge has found the previous government failed to adequately explain their proposals. As part of wider reforms that help people into work and ensure fiscal sustainability, the government will re-consult on the WCA descriptor changes, addressing the shortcomings in the previous consultation, in light of the judgment. The government intends to deliver the full level of savings in the public finances forecasts.”
The announcement seems to suggest that, rather than introducing their own changes to the WCA, Labour intends to re-consult on the Tory proposals.
If it was Labour’s intention all along to introduce the Tory WCA changes, which they would not have needed to consult on again were it not for today’s High Court ruling, then many voters will feel that the government acted in extreme bad faith by keeping their plan secret since before the election.
And given the spokesperson’s firm undertaking that Labour intends to deliver the Tory’s forecast savings, few people will have any faith in the genuineness of this new consultation.
