Making your voice heard is definitely not a waste of time. 

It appears that the government were panicked into dropping a planned freeze to PIP before it was even announced, because of fears of a backbench revolt. So there’s clearly hope they can be persuaded to drop other measures.

Please use the comments section below to share ideas for speaking out, tell us what action you’ve taken or pass on responses from MPs, Lords or anyone else.  But please do stay on-topic.

Take part in the consultation

Contact your MP

Contact your councillors

Contact a member of the House of Lords

Contact an All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG)

Contact local media

Contact organisations you have a connection with

Support a campaign

Sign a petition

Take part in a protest

Do you live in Runcorn and Helsby?

Take part in the consultation

Normally we would be urging people to take part in a consultation on an issue like this.

But the DWP consultation in this case is so unfair that we have very mixed feelings.  It fails to ask questions about most of the issues that people would want to give an opinion on, such as:

  • Changes to PIP scoring
  • Abolishing the WCA
  • Freezing the UC health element
  • Having a single assessment for both PIP and the UC health element

You can read more about why we are so unhappy with the consultation here.

But we also know that the DWP may argue that lack of response means that most people do not object to the changes.  There is also the chance to give your opinion on things such as what support should be available to people who have their PIP cut if the changes happen.  

So, if you consider that taking part in the consultation is the lesser of two evils, you can do so here.   The closing date is 30 June 2025.

Contact your MP

Whatever party your MP is a member of, it is worth contacting them. 

Some parties will be against the cuts and your support for their position will encourage them.

Even some Conservative MPs may decide not to support the Green Paper, or may choose to only support parts of it,  if only to cause problems for the Labour leadership.

And Labour MPs will need a lot of encouragement to have the courage to rebel.

You can email your MP via Write To Them  Make sure you include your name and address so that they know you are one of their constituents.

Even better, write them a letter or arrange to talk to them in-person at a constituency surgery.

We recommend that you make any communication very polite and reasonably brief. If you are going to be personally affected by the changes then focus mainly on how you will be affected by the proposals.

As of 1 April, 27 Labour MPs have openly said they will vote against the Green Paper cuts.

Contact a Lord

You don’t have your own member of the House of Lords, in the way you have an MP.  But the House of Lords can do a great deal to challenge, delay and sometimes even change legislation.

If you visit the Lords section of Write To Them there is an option to “Find a Lord interested in my topic”. 

You can put in key words like “PIP”, “social security”, “depression”  – it’s best if you enclose them in quote marks – and you’ll be given a list of the Lords who have spoken about your chosen subject the most. It will also tell you which party, if any, they belong to.  It’s worth checking what they have said on the subject as some may be strongly anti-claimant.

Alternatively, you can select a Lord who has a connection with where you live or work.   

At the top of their results page there will be a link saying “I want to write to. . .” which will allow you to email them.

As with MPs above, please aim to be polite and reasonably brief.

Contact your councillors

Local councillors don’t have a say in national policy making, but they are likely to have a close connection with their local party machine and can feed back rising concern about these measures.  If the Green Paper cuts to benefits go through, they are likely to place an increased strain on local services .  The Disability Policy thinktank forecast that the cuts will lead to £1.2bn in extra costs for the NHS and local care services provided by councils, so councillors should be concerned. 

You can find your local councillors here

You can also find out if your councillors are up for re-election on 1 May.  If you have a Labour councillor you could explain to them how the Green Paper will affect your voting intentions.

Contact an All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG)

As well as contacting your own MP about the proposed benefits cuts, you may be able to get your message to other MPs of all parties, if there is  an All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) which covers your condition.

APPGs consist of members of both Houses of Parliament, from all parties, who share an interest in a particular topic.  A number of these groups relate to different health conditions.

We've put together more information and a list of the most relevant APPGs here.

Contact local media

Local newspaper are often fairly desperate for content, including reader’s letters.  You can ask for your name and address to be withheld to maintain your privacy.  Write about why you are concerned about the cuts and encourage other readers to complete the consultation or contact their MP

The Local Media Works website allows you to find the contact details for local papers in your area.

If you have a local BBC Radio station, you can find their contact details here.

Contact organisations you have a connection with

If you have a connection with a major charity, please contact them if you think they could be doing more to publicise the Green Paper changes and encouraging their members/visitors to take action. 

Alternatively, if they are doing a great job, let them know that it's appreciated, because there's always an element of worry for a charity when it criticises the government

And you may have a connection with a smaller charity or a local branch that could also be more proactive on this issue, perhaps with some support from you.

Or you may be have contacts with an advice agency, housing association, trades union, housing association , food bank or some other group that could also be encouraged to do their bit.

Sign a petition

Signing a petition probably doesn’t achieve much on its own, in most cases.  But if it’s just one of a range of ways you are trying to make your voice heard then it’s worth doing.

Labour MP Richard Burgon has launched a petition against his own party’s benefits cuts.  (21,000 signatures on 01.04.25)

There's one from 38 Degrees headed No to cruel benefits cuts.  (73,000 signatures on 01.04.25)

On Change.org there is Reform the Recent Changes to Disability Benefits  (42,000 signatures on 01.04.25)

And Scope have a Cutting disability benefits would be catastrophic petition here.  (62,000 signatures on 01.04.25)

Let us know in the comments section about any petitions you have spotted. 

Support a campaign

There may be campaigns being run by different organisations that you can support.

Scope have a campaign asking people to contact their MP and request that they meet with Scope to discuss cuts to disability benefits.

Take part in a protest

DPAC and allies have called a National Day Of Action across the UK, Wednesday 26th March 2025.  London action: Meet at 11am at Downing Street.

Swansea Disabled People Against Cuts are protesting in Swansea Castle Square, 1pm Wednesday 26th March 2025. email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Let us know in the comments section or drop us an email, if you are organising a protest or aware of one.

Do you live in Runcorn and Helsby?

Clearly this will apply only to very few readers.  But if you live in Runcorn and Helsby the date of a byelection will very soon be announced and campaigning will begin.  This will be a chance for Labour to discover what effect benefits cuts are having on their electability, so please try to contact your Labour candidate and also make sure that any canvassers you encounter hear your fears about the Green Paper.

 

Latest news on PIP/UC changes

What’s changing, when

What you can do

New PIP test

PIP/UC News Archive

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  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 21 hours ago
    I have just sent an email to my local mp for the area i live in .
    I do not hold much hope of getting a reply from this mp , because this mp voted to cut the winter fuel allowance for pensioners so what hope do we have in any support from them 
    • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
      · 10 hours ago
      @colcs Best MP is  Croydon one. But I dont know you can use her. Have you MAYOR you can write to them.🙏🏼
  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 5 days ago
    I’m not sure if other areas are doing this yet but Leicester City Council are now using PIP payments as income when deciding how much council tax you pay. My CT has gone from £50 per month to £150 per month. We also have Liz Kendall as a MP here.
  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 5 days ago
    I’ve completed the consultation and also wrote what I felt about the parts they didn’t ask about, eg changing of pip scoring, wca being abolished, freezing health element etc. There are places to bring it all up even though they don’t specifically ask you so it’s def worth doing it.  I made a huge deal about the change of scoring the whole way through 
  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 6 days ago
    To be honest every learning disability need to keep there mlney it helps me to be able to get from home to hospital appointment 
  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 6 days ago
    Crips Against Cuts have an open letter you can sign here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeEuYp2LlRbPQxGhAO58DgnRaL0i9S2jYP9toAg6Kx9eY3TRQ/viewform
  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 6 days ago
    Why not claim PIPS or Attendance Allowance if you haven't already-. It's an underclaimed benefit and no one can stop you claiming if you haven't done so. The more people claim the more a mockery is made of the proposed savings.
  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 6 days ago
    To the jan who I commented on early today in respect of her question on receiving PIP after retirement which affects me also. I have just sent an email to liz Kendall MP (DWP cabinet minister) asking her to clarify this. Regards Gary 
  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 6 days ago
    People can also sign this petition with thousands of signatures https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/703827
  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 6 days ago
    There are also council elections coming up in Lancashire. 
  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 6 days ago
    So she's not taking giant tech US companies as she doesn't want to upset Trump and Musk
  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 6 days ago
    The 4 points thing is crazy as these assessors don't give points in a valid way, my last renewal was horrendous he had ignored everything I said and I had to do a MR and the only thing that they listened to was that I had proof I need hearing aids they ignored all other information I gave. I have progressed with all my conditions but I just struggle to describe how it affects me due to my autism so I'm at a disadvantage. I handed in over 20 pages of additional info and they ignored it all. How will we scored 4 points when the system is like this? I don't have medical proof either as I'm so sick of being told they can't help, I don't go and waste their time. Maybe if we all start using the NHS to breaking point we'll be heard, instead of muddling on and copi g as best we can.  
  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 6 days ago
    No response from my MP but it is Alison McGovern so doubtful she would help anyway. 
  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 7 days ago
    Our local MP has left the Labour Party because of it (after being in the party for 40years) 
  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 9 days ago
    What about visiting MPs at their constituency surgeries to register objection and seek support for opposing the legislation?  Would that be of any benefit?  After all, MP's can delegate responding to correspondence to secretaries and case workers - people turning up at their surgeries might be a way of speaking to them directly and informing them of the harm to individuals posed by the Green Paper proposals.
  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 9 days ago
    Contacted Scope I tried to contact Labour MP BUT NO RESPONSE. The Torie MP here is and always has been about persecuting the disabled.

    I did try to find a Lord via how the site suggests. That was actually a bit strange All results and there were NOT that many and the few on there were already 'parrot fashion' repeating the same thing. That they were for the green paper proposals.

    Local Council reminding them and social workers of how the contributions that we make towards our care if this all goes ahead we will NOT be able to afford to live let alone contribute towards cost of our care workers by 2030. As we do in my geographical area now. They already KNOW this but putting it in an email can clearly start to state to the MP this is what is going to happen. Council's up and down the country will NOT be happy about this but there is a duty of care to provide care. 

    Great to hear that Caroline C got a positive response from her local Labour group as there are so many of us who are NOT getting any response. 
  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 9 days ago
    I contacted my local Labour group and had a positive result. Also complained to the national Labour Party (no response yet). Contacting DWP also an option. Managed to do all of these v=ia online forms.
  • Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated before being published.
    · 11 days ago
    I have contacted my local mp who says that I have her full support with my opposition to the planned cuts. I have also signed both petitions on both scope and 38 degrees. the more people that do all of the same then the government will see how much of a fight they have on their hands. Also do it for others who may not be able to.
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