Although Labour claimed earlier this year that they would be restarting work capability assessment (WCA) reassessments, there is little evidence that this is actually happening.
According to a written answer by Stephen Timms, between January and August of this year, more than 25 times as many WCAs for new claims were carried out as WCAs for existing claimants who were being reassessed.
The figures show that between January and August of this year:
- 424,000 new claimants completed a WCA, an average of 53,00 a month
- 15,300 existing claimants completed a WCA, an average of 1,912 a month
There are currently 110,000 existing claimants awaiting WCAs. This includes claimants who have reported a worsening of their condition, who may now be eligible for a higher rate of payment and whose reassessments are supposed to be prioritised.
Labour claimed in their Pathways To Work Green Paper that “in advance of scrapping the WCA, we will restart re-assessments to make sure that people are accessing the benefits and support they should be, which will mean better outcomes for people who undergo a WCA and for taxpayers.”
However, there is no sign of any significant increase in WCAs and the the test itself is due to be scrapped in 2028/29.
With more reassessments falling due and more people informing the DWP of a change in their condition, it currently looks very unlikely that the enormous WCA reassessment backlog will be cleared before the WCA itself is abolished
