A university researcher has spoken of fears for young people, particularly those leaving the care system, facing welfare cuts under the Labour government.
Dr Ciara Fitzpatrick, who also lectures in social security law and social justice, is opposed to the changes, which include a proposal to make the health top-up element of Universal Credit (UC) unavailable for those under 22 as well as stricter criteria for applications to Personal Independence Payments (PIP).
In Northern Ireland, around one-in-ten of all Universal Credit (UC) claimants are aged between 16 and 24, while in general, almost two-in-five households receive the ‘limited capacity for work’ top-up.
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Dr Fitzpatrick said the removal of the health top-ups would be “terrifying and nonsensical”.
“That is basically assuming that young people of that age group will not have conditions that prevent them from working and that is just squarely not the truth,” she said.
She said she was particularly concerned about care leavers who are “trying to get a foothold into adult life”.
Figures released this week for the year 2023/24 show that there were over 600 care leavers in the north – 393 aged between 16 and 18 and a further 260 aged 19.
“That group of people, specifically, are vulnerable enough as it is without compounding that vulnerability,” she said.
“They are probably the most vulnerable group that you could think of and they’re going to be so severely impacted by this; they’re going to be left destitute, really unable to meet the most basic needs.”
She added that public services in the north were “completely unprepared to deal with the fallout of these cuts”.
Figures from the Northern Ireland Audit Office showed the north had the lowest level of health budget spent on mental health in the UK and Ireland.
Níamh Burns, a benefits advisor at the Ardoyne Association, said that she thinks the cuts will be “more difficult for a certain group of people”.
This would include those with mental health issues as they struggle to prove that they meet more stringent PIP criteria.
“There’s very few that I come across that would have no health conditions or no history of poor mental health,” she said.
She added that those on UC under the age of 25 are “already £20 or £30 worse off” each month than those over the age threshold.
“Having [the health element] being wiped out from under them is concerning considering they still have the health condition; they’re still dealing with the problem every single day, but with no additional support.”
Ms Burns said she was concerned there could be an increase in those needing services such as foodbanks as a result, however she did urge anyone needing help to reach out to existing support services.
The full extent of benefits cuts in the north remains to be seen, however the communities minister has said the funds needed to cover the prospective cuts could cost £150m.