Get Britain Working: Pathways to Work

Work and Pensions Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 23 Apr 2025 Closed: 1 Jan 2026 Parliament page
The Work and Pensions Committee is undertaking a short inquiry into the impact of the Government’s proposals to reform the disability and health related benefits system, as set out in the Pathways to Work Green Paper. The Committee is not putting out a call for evidence, but the terms of … Read more
6 Recommendations
17 Conclusions
1 Report
3 Oral sessions
2 Letters
3 Events
Activity timeline 10 events
23 Oct
2025
Report published
29 Jul
2025
Report published
25 Jun
2025
Oral evidence
25 Jun
2025
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · Room 6, Palace of Westminster
11 Jun
2025
Correspondence
21 May
2025
Correspondence
7 May
2025
Oral evidence
7 May
2025
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Macmillan Room, Portcullis House
22 Apr
2025
Oral evidence
22 Apr
2025
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Thatcher Room, Portcullis House
Oral evidence sessions 3 sessions
25 Jun 2025
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Work and Pensions Committee
Katherine Pateman · Department for Work and Pensions Rt Hon Sir Stephen Timms · Department for Work and Pensions Shaun Butcher · Department for Work and Pensions
7 May 2025
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Work and Pensions Committee
David Berry · Manchester City Council David Finch · The Health Foundation Dr Lucy Foulkes · Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford Ellen Clifford · Disabled People Against Cuts James Taylor · Scope Jonathan Andrew · Rethink Mental Illness Mikey Erhardt · Disability Rights UK Professor Ben Barr · University of Liverpool
22 Apr 2025
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Work and Pensions Committee
Angela Matthews · Business Disability Forum Iain Porter · Joseph Rowntree Foundation Jean-André Prager · Policy Exchange Professor Ben Geiger · King’s College London Ruth Curtice · Resolution Foundation Ruth Patrick · University of York Tom Pollard · New Economics Foundation
Title HC No. Published Items Response
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: Pathways to Work HC 837 29 Jul 2025 23 Responded
Recommendations & Conclusions
23 results
1 Conclusion Accepted
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Increased health-related welfare spending coincides with falls in non-health, non-pensioner welfare spending.
We agree that recent increases in spending on health-related welfare, as well as future spending projections, are concerning, but at the same time, we cannot ignore the fact that spending on non-health related, non-pensioner welfare has fallen, especially given the … Read more
Government Response
The government committed to an above-inflation increase in the Universal Credit standard allowance, legislated through the Universal Credit Act (September 2025), and a reduction in the UC health element for new claimants from April 2026, with standard allowance rates to be kept under review.
Department for Work and Pensions
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2 Conclusion Accepted
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Incapacity benefit system is broken, failing to adequately support people into work.
We agree that the incapacity benefit system is broken. It focuses too much on what people cannot do and on assessing claimants’ eligibility for benefits, rather than on supporting them into work. As concluded by many of the most reputable … Read more
Government Response
The government outlined the Severe Conditions Criteria (SCC), in use since September 2017, which aims to reduce reassessments for individuals with severe, lifelong conditions, and described stakeholder engagement regarding its application within the Universal Credit system.
Department for Work and Pensions
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3 Conclusion Accepted
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Rising ill-health and financial insecurity are significant factors driving increased benefit claims.
Trends in health-related benefit spending cannot be properly understood without appreciating the impact of rising ill-health and financial insecurity. The disparity between the standard and higher rates, for example, would not be nearly so great an incentive to claim were … Read more
Government Response
The government stated its intention, outlined in the Green Paper, to introduce a 'Pathways to Work Guarantee' providing personalised work, health, and skills support for disabled people and those with health conditions claiming out-of-work benefits.
Department for Work and Pensions
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4 Conclusion Deferred
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Workplace accessibility is highly relevant to Government reforms impacting Work Capability Assessment criticisms.
The accessibility of workplaces is highly relevant to the Government’s reforms, especially since it has predicated its criticisms of the Work Capability Assessment partly on there being a range of jobs and adaptations available in the labour market. We will … Read more
Government Response
The government explained its proposed reform, outlined in the Pathways to Work Green Paper, where the Universal Credit Health Element (UCHE) will be based on eligibility for a Daily Living Award in PIP and not linked to work capacity, without addressing workplace accessibility.
Department for Work and Pensions
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5 Conclusion Deferred
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Welcomed UC standard allowance increases, but significant reductions for new claimants are concerning.
We are sympathetic to the intention behind the changes to UC rates and we agree with the importance of increasing the standard allowance. As such, we warmly welcome the desperately needed increases in the standard allowance, although we hope the … Read more
Government Response
The government stated it is considering responses to its Green Paper consultation on raising the age for Universal Credit Health Element access and will set out its policy direction in due course, rather than directly addressing concerns about the reduction in UC health for new claimants.
Department for Work and Pensions
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6 Recommendation Deferred
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Implement further increases to Universal Credit standard allowance and delay UC health reduction for disabled people.
We recommend that the Government consider implementing further increases to the standard allowance over the life of the Parliament, in addition to those provided for in the Universal Credit Bill. We also call on the Government to delay the reduction … Read more
Government Response
The government stated it is carefully considering responses to its Green Paper consultation on conditionality and employment support for disabled people and will share further details in due course, without committing to further increases in the standard allowance or delaying the reduction in UC health.
Department for Work and Pensions
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7 Conclusion Accepted
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Concerns remain about serious mental health conditions not covered by severe conditions criteria.
We are pleased the Government has provided some clarity about how those with the most severe, lifelong conditions will be protected, at least until the removal of the Work Capability Assessment, and we look forward to the publication of the … Read more
Government Response
The government clarified that Severe Conditions Criteria (SCC) have been in use since 2017 with stakeholder engagement, and detailed further conversations held in July 2025 regarding eligibility for protected UC health rates.
Department for Work and Pensions
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8 Recommendation Accepted
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Set out stakeholder conversations and assessments on UC health eligibility for severe conditions.
We ask that the Government set out what conversations it had with stakeholders about the eligibility criteria for the protected rate of UC health for those with the most severe, lifelong conditions, and any assessment it has made about the … Read more
Government Response
The government sets out that a range of stakeholders, including several disability and charity groups, were engaged in 2017 and again in July 2025 regarding the Severe Conditions Criteria (SCC). It clarifies that any customer with functional LCWRA advised during a WCA will be considered for SCC regardless of diagnosis, if they meet the criteria of a lifelong health condition with no realistic prospect of recovery.
Department for Work and Pensions
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9 Conclusion Accepted
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Changes to Personal Independence Payment daily living component eligibility generated significant concern.
The change to eligibility for the daily living component of the Personal Independence Payment was always the source of greatest concern and anger. This was partly because it appeared to many that the Government was treating PIP as an incapacity … Read more
Government Response
The government responded by explaining that Clause 5 of the Bill, which concerned PIP eligibility, was removed due to public concerns, and reforms to PIP will now proceed through the co-produced Timms Review.
Department for Work and Pensions
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10 Conclusion Not Addressed
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Removal of Universal Credit Bill Clause 5 welcomed, but policy development and impact analysis lacked.
In the end, the Government made the right decision by removing Clause 5 from the Universal Credit Bill, as a result of which there will now be no change to PIP eligibility until after the completion of the PIP review. … Read more
Government Response
The government confirmed the removal of Clause 5 from the Bill and stated that PIP reforms will proceed through the co-produced Timms Review, but did not address the committee's concerns regarding policy development process, impact analysis, or long-term considerations.
Department for Work and Pensions
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11 Recommendation Accepted in Part
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Explain safeguarding assessment of UC/PIP Bill and publish impact on disability benefit flows.
We call on the Government to explain in its response to our report what assessment it made of the safeguarding implications of the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill before it was introduced to Parliament. We also recommend that … Read more
Government Response
The government confirms an equality impact assessment for the Bill was undertaken. For the second part, it refers to existing Green Paper plans for work and health support and existing OBR/IFS analyses, rather than committing to publish a new, specific assessment as requested.
Department for Work and Pensions
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12 Conclusion Accepted
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Government's proposed WCA abolition decouples UC health from work capacity assessment.
We agree with the principle of a streamlined, single health and disability assessment, given the distress caused by repeated and unnecessary assessments. The objection to the Government’s proposal to abolish the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) and to link eligibility for … Read more
Government Response
The government reiterates its existing policy, as set out in the Pathways to Work Green Paper, that eligibility for the Universal Credit Health Element will be based on PIP daily living awards and decoupled from capacity to work, noting ongoing discussions with the Scottish Government.
Department for Work and Pensions
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13 Conclusion Accepted
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Decoupling UC health from work capacity raises questions about future benefit type.
We are cautiously supportive of the idea of decoupling UC health from an assessment of a person’s capacity for work, but it does raise an important question about what type of benefit UC health will be in the future. If … Read more
Government Response
The government restates its policy that the Universal Credit Health Element will be linked to PIP daily living awards and explains that DWP describes the element by its function for customer understanding, rather than classifying it as a type of benefit.
Department for Work and Pensions
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14 Conclusion Accepted
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Minister confirms protection for vulnerable groups under new UC health system.
The regulations underpinning the WCA include important safeguards for those with high-risk pregnancies, the terminally ill, those receiving cancer treatment and those who would be at substantial risk if they were not awarded UC health. Given the serious impact the … Read more
Government Response
The government detailed the Severe Conditions Criteria (SCC), in use since 2017 with stakeholder engagement, explaining how it protects those with the most severe lifelong conditions by considering them for automatic eligibility.
Department for Work and Pensions
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15 Conclusion Acknowledged
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Devolved disability benefits in Scotland pose significant obstacles to UC health implementation.
As the Minister accepted when he gave oral evidence, the fact that disability benefits are a devolved matter in Scotland presents potentially very serious obstacles to implementation. We are particularly concerned about the possibility that in the future the criteria … Read more
Government Response
The government acknowledges the concern about devolved disability benefits and states that discussions are ongoing with the Scottish Government regarding interactions between devolved and reserved systems.
Department for Work and Pensions
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16 Recommendation Accepted in Part
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Clarify the future type of UC health benefit and update on Scottish implementation progress.
We recommend that the Government: • clarify what type of benefit UC health will be in the reformed system; and • provide an update as soon as possible on the progress of discussions with the Scottish Government regarding implementation in … Read more
Government Response
The government clarified that additional financial support will be the UC Health Element (UCHE), based on PIP Daily Living Awards, and described its function rather than classifying it as a benefit type. Discussions with the Scottish Government regarding implementation are ongoing.
Department for Work and Pensions
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17 Conclusion Acknowledged
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
PIP assessment review terms published, prioritising co-production with disabled people.
We welcome the publication of the terms of reference for the review of the PIP assessment, which is in desperate need of reform, and the Government’s commitment to co-produce it with disabled people and their organisations, as we called for … Read more
Government Response
The government confirmed that reforms to PIP will be taken forward through the co-produced Timms Review, following the removal of clause 5 from the Bill.
Department for Work and Pensions
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18 Conclusion
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
PIP assessment process experiences remain dreadful, requiring greater provider accountability.
People’s experiences of the PIP assessment process are often dreadful, so we fully support the proposal to record all assessments, but we think still more needs to be done to hold assessment providers to account for their performance. This subject … Read more
Department for Work and Pensions
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19 Conclusion Deferred
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
No justification for denying young people access to UC health until age 22.
We share the Minister’s concern about young people being trapped in economic inactivity before their working lives have even begun, but we do not see why this means they should lose entitlement to UC health. The Government’s changes to UC … Read more
Government Response
The government stated that it welcomed views on raising the age for Universal Credit Health Element access as part of a consultation and is currently considering responses, with the policy direction to be set out in due course.
Department for Work and Pensions
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20 Recommendation Deferred
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Review decision to delay young people's access to UC health until age 22.
We urge the Government to review its decision to delay access to UC health until the age of 22. (Recommendation, Paragraph 138)
Government Response
The government states it welcomed views on raising the age for Universal Credit Health Element access as part of a recent Green Paper consultation. It is currently considering the responses and will set out the policy direction in due course, deferring a decision on the recommendation to review its initial decision.
Department for Work and Pensions
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21 Conclusion Acknowledged
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Enshrining the right to try work in legislation is an important trust-building step.
Enshrining the right to try work in legislation will be a small but important and worthwhile measure that could provide greater clarity and even reduce levels of mistrust by putting the matter beyond doubt. This is just one step, however, … Read more
Government Response
The government confirmed it continues to develop reforms, including introducing the "right to try guarantee," and is considering consultation responses to set out detailed plans in due course.
Department for Work and Pensions
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22 Conclusion Deferred
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Uncertainty remains regarding conditionality regime determination and appeals process for disabled people.
We are cautiously optimistic about the Government’s proposals for conditionality, although a great deal remains uncertain. The tone of the Green Paper suggests the Government is minded to focus more on positive engagement than coercive conditionality. We appreciate the concerns … Read more
Government Response
The government reiterated its Green Paper approach to conditionality focusing on personalised employment support and periodic conversations, acknowledging the need for further detail and clarity on regimes and operations, with proposals to be shared in due course.
Department for Work and Pensions
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23 Recommendation Deferred
3rd Report – Get Britain Working: …
Clarify government intentions for disabled people's conditionality regime, including appeal rights.
We recommend that the Government clarify its intentions for the conditionality regime for disabled people. In particular, it should spell out what requirements beyond support conversations a disabled person might have to meet. Furthermore, if the nature of a person’s … Read more
Government Response
The government acknowledged the need for further clarity on the conditionality regime for disabled people, including requirements and work coach discretion, and stated they are considering consultation responses and will share detailed proposals in due course.
Department for Work and Pensions
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Government Response AI assessment · 22 of 6 classified
Accepted 9
Accepted in Part 2
Acknowledged 3
Deferred 7
Not Addressed 1
Total 6 recs + 17 conclusions
Correspondence 2 letters
11 Jun 2025 Correspondence from the Secretary of State, responding to the Committee’s 21 May letter regarding the Pathways to Work Green Paper
Parliament page
21 May 2025 Correspondence with the Secretary of State, relating to the Pathways to Work Green Paper
Parliament page