TERMINALLY ILL cancer sufferers face waiting weeks and months for income support payments because of a new government pay system.
Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith's
reforms have been heavily criticised [GETTY]
The situation has been described as "appalling" by
a leading cancer charity.
The government's attempt to simplify the payment
system means benefits which previously took between eight to 10 days to arrive
are now taking up to 10 weeks, according to Macmillan Cancer Support.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) which
introduced the changes have defended the changes and questioned the cancer
charity's figures.
The new process for claiming disability benefit was
introduced in April as part of sweeping changes to Britain's welfare system.
Personal Independence Payments (PIPs) are replacing
the Disability Living Allowance (DLA) in what ministers claim is a
simplification of the system.
Macmillan disagree arguing the changes have left
hundreds without support.
Keith Boyd, who was diagnosed with terminal cancer
in May, told the BBC the delay had made him feel "like a
second-class citizen".
He said: "People were telling me I was entitled to
this benefit but nobody was paying it.
"If you had children and you were trying to survive
on nothing, I don't know how you would do it."
Labour leader Ed Miliband and Shadow Chancellor Ed
Balls have been highly critical of the reforms
[AFP/GETTY]
Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith has
consistently defended his reforms.
Back in April he said the government was trying to
lower the welfare bill "in a way that we can be as fair as possible - without
slashing or attacking people but trying to reform it and change it".
A DWP spokesperson said under the new PIPs,
terminally ill cancer patients were now being "fast tracked" while under the
previous system of the DLA they were required to fill out a 40-page
form.
The DWP has also cast doubt over Macmillan's
criticisms saying there were no "robust statistics" to support them.
Macmillan's director of policy and research Mike
Hobday made the claims during an interview with Radio 4's Today programme.
"The principle of a fast-track process for
terminally ill patients… is still there but the fact that the processing time
has gone from eight-to-10 days to eight-to-10 weeks really is
appalling."
