With over 182,000 people in receipt of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) in Northern Ireland, news of national proposals for reform by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has left the Stormont Minister responsible worried.

He said that in NI, there are 103,500 such claimants of working age, and this will be the group that will be targeted first.

He said the proposed changes to DLA include renaming the benefit, the introduction of an assessment process and simplifying the system with a reduced number of rates being made available to claimants and an extension to the qualifying criteria.

This means the new benefit will only be available to those with a long-term health condition, expected to last a minimum of 12 months, as opposed to the current six months and all those who are successful in being awarded the new benefit will be periodically reviewed.

Responding to the proposals Social Development Minister Alex Attwood said: "I am concerned about the scale, pace and intention of these proposed changes, given the high number of people who are in receipt of DLA here.

"The Coalition Government has to acknowledge the different circumstances in Northern Ireland. I will work to have our conditions fully recognised," he said, noting that he met with the Westminster Welfare Minister, Lord Freud last week, for the third time.

"I outlined to him in detail a number of measures in terms of welfare law, benefits practice and hardship needs which I believe will provide a pathway through Northern Ireland's difficult conditions in a way that would help those in need," he said.

The Coalition government intend to introduce the reforms in 2013/14 and, as part of a consultation paper, are asking for the public view on whether or not to roll the proposed reforms out to include children and pensioners in receipt of DLA in the future.

Minister Attwood added that he would be meeting again with Lord Freud to raise his concerns about the potential fall-out for Northern Ireland if the reform of DLA was to go ahead here.

Minister Attwood continued: "The full impact of many of these cuts and changes is beginning to be felt and understood and this places a higher need and obligation on all of us in London and Belfast to work out how best to do everything to protect those in need."

(BMcC/GK)