Page last updated: 21 July, 2025
Summer 2026: Universal Credit Bill to become law
The Universal Credit Bill is now certain to become law by the end of the summer, after being subject to some very significant amendments which removed all matters relating to personal independence payment (PIP). This means that the proposed 4-point rule, which would have restricted the PIP daily living component to claimants who scored a minimum of 4 points for one activity, has been abandoned.
However, this is just the start of years of proposed welfare reforms by the Labour government.
We’ve set out some of the major planned changes below. Over the summer we will be creating a more detailed summary.
Autumn 2025: Timms PIP assessment review begins work
At this point there is no certainty over whether Timms review of the PIP assessment relates to current claimants or only to new claimants, once the new assessment comes into force.
According to the terms of reference, the review will include will include consideration of:
- The role of the PIP assessment.
- The assessment criteria – including activities, descriptors and associated points. The review will consider both the Daily Living and Mobility elements of the PIP assessment.
- Whether any other evidence should be considered alongside the functional assessment to fairly reflect the impact of living with a long-term health condition or disability, including related to an individual’s personal circumstances and environment.
- How the PIP assessment could provide fair access to the right support at the right level across the benefits system.
- What role the assessment could and should play in unlocking wider support
Timms says that he will “engage widely over the summer to design the process for the work of the review, including to ensure that expertise from a range of different perspectives is drawn upon.”
The actual work of the review will begin in the Autumn of 2025. At this stage we have no idea whether the review will share information about its work as it goes along or whether it will be kept confidential until its findings are handed over to the secretary of state in Autumn 2026.
Date TBC: Pathways To Work White Paper to be published.
We don’t have a date for the white paper yet. It could be as early as Autumn 2025. The white paper follows the Green Paper Pathways To Work consultation and should include proposals on:
- Removing barriers to trying work
- Supporting people who lose entitlement to PIP
- Proposed Unemployment Insurance contributory benefit
- Delaying access to the UC health element until age 22
- Raising the age at which people can claim PIP to 18
Timms has said in his terms of reference for the review of the PIP assessment that the abolition of the WCA will also be in the white paper.
April 2026: Universal Credit Act comes into force
The Universal Credit Act will introduce cuts to the UC health element for new claims, increases to the UC standard rate and the introduction of the severe conditions criteria as a means of deciding who gets the higher rate of the UC health element.
The UC standard allowance for new and existing claims will be increased. This will mean the single person 25+ rate of UC standard allowance increasing by £7 per week, from £91pw in 2024/2025 to £98pw in 2026/2027.
From April 2026, the LCWRA element (which the Green Paper calls the health element) for existing claimants will be frozen at £97pw until 2029/30, but claimants will benefit from the increased standard allowance. However, the freeze to the universal health element will not to apply to:
- existing claimants,
- people who meet the severe conditions criteria
- terminally ill patients.
For new claims from April 2026, the rate of the LCWRA element – now called the health element - will be reduced by £47pw, from £97pw in 2024/2025 to £50pw in 2026/2027.
People on the health element of UC will be expected, as a minimum, to participate in periodic conversations about work and support (with exceptions where this would not be appropriate). If someone does not attend or engage in a planned conversation, the DWP will seek to understand the reasons before benefits are affected. In other words, sanctions can be applied to people in this group. However, the green paper says that "as now, we do not envisage the requirement on this group extending to undertaking specific work related activity or to look for work or take jobs."
Autumn 2026: Timms review of the PIP assessment given to the secretary of state
The government has said they want to introduce changes as quickly as possible after the Timms review is completed. How soon they happen will depend on whether they require primary or secondary legislation or no legislation at all. But some changes could come in as early as Spring 2027.
2026/27: Right To Try Guarantee
The Green Paper says that the government will establish in law the principle that work will not lead to a reassessment. For people receiving UC, PIP (in England and Wales), or NS ESA (whilst and if it is in place), we will introduce legislation that guarantees that trying work will not be considered a relevant change of circumstance that will trigger a PIP award review or WCA reassessment.
2027/28: Delaying access to the UC health element until age 22
This is one of the issues that was consulted on in the Pathways To Work Green Paper. We should have more details, including whether Labour intend to go ahead with the proposal, when the White Paper is published.
2028/29: Abolition of the WCA
The work capability assessment (WCA) is the current test which gives access to the limited capability for work-related activity (LCWRA) element of universal credit.
The LCWRA element of UC will be replaced for new claimants from April 2026 by the UC health element.
Then, from 2028/29, the WCA will be axed and eligibility for the UC health element will depend upon being in receipt of the daily living component of PIP.
According to the Green Paper, only 63% of people currently receiving the health element of UC or ESA are also in receipt of PIP or DLA.
There is currently no certainty about whether current LCWRA claimants who do not receive PIP daily living will be affected by the change.
2028/29: PIP/UC single assessment
At the same time as the WCA is abolished, the new PIP assessment that is created by the Timms review will be introduced, if it has not been introduced earlier. This single assessment will give access to both PIP and the health element of UC.
2028/29: New Unemployment Insurance contributory benefit
The Green Paper gave sketchy details of a proposal to replace New Style Employment and Support Allowance (NS ESA) and New Style Jobseeker’s Allowance (NS JSA) with one new Unemployment Insurance benefit.
It will be paid at the ESA rate (currently £138pw) and will be time-limited.
People claiming Unemployment Insurance will be expected to actively seek work with ”easments” for those with work-limiting health conditions.
It is not clear how it will be decided if a claimant has a work-limiting health condition, as the WCA is being abolished.
After the, as yet unquantified, time-limit on Unemployment Insurance has expired, claimants will have to attempt to claim UC.
We should know more when the White Paper is published.
There is no certainty about how this proposal might affect current claimants.
