Select committee: Work and Pensions Committee

Conclusion 15

3rd Report – Get Britain Working: Pathways to Work Published 29 Jul 2025 Addressed to Department for Work and Pensions
Conclusion (the committee's words)
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 for determining eligibility for the Adult Disability Payment could be very different from those for PIP, especially in the context of the record level of funding provided to the Scottish Government in the 2025–26 funding settlement. We will scrutinise very carefully the solution the Minister expects to be set out in the autumn White Paper. (Conclusion, Paragraph 120)

From: Work and Pensions Committee, 3rd Report – Get Britain Working: Pathways to Work (HC 837), 29 July 2025

Government response

The government responded to the whole report on 23 October 2025 (deadline 29 September 2025).

Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.

The Government "supports" the Committee's conclusion that the incapacity benefit system is broken, welcomes the report, and on most recommendations sets out existing measures or says it is considering consultation responses, with plans to follow "in due course".

  • On raising the age of access to the UC Health Element to 22, it is "considering the responses to this consultation" and "will set out the policy direction in due course".
  • On conditionality for disabled people, it "recognise[s] the need to provide further detail and clarity" and will share its proposals "in due course".
  • On standard allowance increases and the UC health element, it points to the Universal Credit Act 2025, states the lower health element "will take effect on 6 April 2026", and says it "will keep standard allowance rates under review".
  • On devolution, it says discussions with the Scottish Government on "the interactions between the devolved and reserved systems" are "ongoing".

Read the government's response ↗ Report an error