Benefit Reforms Introduced

Welfare reforms that will change the way single parents apply for child maintenance have been introduced by the Government.

Incapacity Benefit will end today for new claimants, and will be replaced with a new benefit - the Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) - which the Government said would mark the end of "writing people off".

New claimants who cannot work due to ill health, will be able to claim the new allowance, and within a matter of weeks have their capability assessed by an expert health professional.

While ministers say the reforms have been introduced to simplify the system and ensure those who can't work are given adequate support, a leading charity has argued the changes could push those hit hardest by the current financial downturn into "deeper crisis".

Fiona Weir, chief executive of the One Parent Families/Gingerbread charities, said: "We fear that many poor single parents on benefit will struggle to agree private child support arrangements and their children may end up doing without.

"This would be disastrous for the children affected and for the government's child poverty targets. Greater investment in services to help parents deal with the consequences of separation is needed, as is active promotion of the government's child maintenance scheme."

Ministers, however, said the new assessment was designed to look at what people can do, rather than what they can't.

Work and Pensions Secretary James Purnell said: "It is more important during an economic downturn that we increase support for people not to take it away. The employment and Support Allowance, a significant landmark in our welfare reforms, will offer the help and support to the disabled and the ill."

The Disability Alliance said it hoped the changes would bring about positive improvements in the employment rates of disabled working-age adults.

(JM)