Kate Green MP, Labour’s Shadow Disability Minister, commenting on Personal Independence Payment statistics, said:

“These figures are further evidence of David Cameron’s shambolic introduction of Personal Independence Payments, and proof that the project is behind schedule.

“With less than a quarter of people applying for PIP getting a decision, at this rate it will take a staggering 42 years to assess everybody the Government claimed would be processed by 2018. Thanks to delays and incompetence under David Cameron, millions of disabled people are experiencing anxiety and hardship, while taxpayers are forced to foot the ever-rising bill.

“After the chaos of Universal Credit the government must urgently get a grip of Personal Independence Payments and tackle the mounting delays and waste.”

Ends

Notes to editors:

1. The statistics published today show that in the first twelve months of operating, DWP made decisions for 84,900 people seeking PIP. This is just under 7,000 decisions per month. DWP expected to assess 3.6m people for PIP by 2018. To assess 3.6m people at 7,000 per month would take 514 months (42.8 years) https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/personal-independence-payment-official-statistics-june-2014