Last night, the government’s welfare bill was passed by 335 votes to 260.
As an organisation, we continued to oppose the bill following the first round of concessions announced by the government, due to serious concerns regarding the ‘2-tier’ system that will be created. Under this system, both future generations of people with ME and existing generations will be penalised and subject to harm when they first claim, are reassessed, or look to reclaim, following a worsening of their condition.
The concessions also failed to address further concerns regarding the lack of understanding and awareness of ME from assessors that already exists within the welfare system. They did not lay out any plans to provide confidence that appropriate training and education is in place moving forwards.
However, the government’s latest concession, announced during last night’s debate and a mere hour ahead of the vote, means that changes to PIP eligibility will no longer go ahead until after the review that will be undertaken by Work and Pensions Minister, Sir Stephen Timms MP, who recently attended the ME and Long Covid joint-APPG meeting. The review is due to be published in Autumn 2026.
This is a significant U-turn on one of the most damaging elements of the reforms. It now guarantees that hundreds of thousands of people in receipt of PIP, including those with ME and other fluctuating conditions, will not be subject to the stricter eligibility criteria that was originally proposed.
Despite previously opposing the bill, a number of APPG members and our Parliamentary Champions voted in favour of the bill, following these concessions. This does not mean that their desire to support people with ME has changed.
The Timms review provides a vital opportunity for us to further voice our concerns surrounding the bill and work to ensure that people with ME are protected from harm. In order to be engaged within this review, Labour MPs had little choice but to support the bill. To not do so would have likely prevented the APPG and our Champions from being given a seat at the table.
We will continue to meet with MPs and Ministers, provide written and oral questions to be tabled, engage with the upcoming Timms review and continue to challenge the remaining aspects of the bill, which still pose serious risks to people with ME.
We remain focused on ensuring that the ME community is listened to and protected by any future changes, and the APPG and our network of Parliamentary Champions remain important in supporting us in these aims.
