Tories Launch Review of Disability Benefits Criteria to Curb Costs
The Conservative Party has launched a policy review aimed at reducing the scope and cost of the benefits system, led by Kemi Badenoch alongside three frontbench colleagues. Badenoch highlighted an "age of diagnosis" for low-level mental health issues, such as ADHD, as contributing to the unaffordability of the system.
The review will evaluate which conditions should be classified as disabilities eligible for benefits and consider implementing time limits on some payments, including when support starts and how long it lasts. There is also a possibility the party may move away from using relative poverty as a measure of deprivation.
The reforms are framed as necessary to manage economic shocks from Brexit, the Covid-19 pandemic, and the financial crisis, and to support the broader goal of increasing employment in Britain. Badenoch stated that rising benefit spending is partly due to choices and abuse of the system, with some recipients declining work opportunities.
She defended her use of the term "age of diagnosis" as a policy-focused comment rather than an attempt to stigmatize individuals, emphasizing the importance of practical changes over rhetoric. Proposals for reform will be developed throughout 2026, with input from medical and employment experts.
