IN LATE February of 2025 the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights issued a damning report into the failures of Labour to address income inequality and the deepening levels of poverty in the UK.

The UN committee criticised Labour for failing to address “income inequality or reducing poverty,” which hamper “the progressive realisation of economic, social and cultural rights.’’

Ironically enough, the UN called on Labour to increase spending on housing, health, education and social security in order to reverse the huge damage caused by blue Tory austerity from 2010 to 2024. Since this call the red Tories in power have announced their intention to make massive cuts to public spending across all government departments except defence and maybe health.

On the issue of social security, over which Labour is determined to make killer cuts, the UN expressed serious concern about the impact of blue Tory austerity which had “resulted in severe economic hardship, increased reliance on food banks, homelessness, negative impacts on mental health and the stigmatisation of benefit claimants.”

Of course, food bank usage under Labour continues to grow as does the stigmatisation of benefit claimants which Starmer and company have engaged in with relish over the last few months. 

Starmer, Reeves and Kendall seem to take a sadistic glee in attacking the disabled through the platforms of the Tory media using ultra right-wing rags such as The Telegraph and Sun to stigmatise the sick and disabled.

The biggest irony in this recent UN report is its call for Labour to actually increase the value of disability benefits such as PIP so that the UK can meet “the recommendations made by the special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights.”

A few days ago Liz Kendall, who lives in a £4 million mansion whose £350-a-month heating costs are paid by the taxpayer, announced cuts to personal independence payment (PIP) which will deny this essential benefit to over one million disabled people. These people will be driven further into destitution forcing them to make decisions over whether to go without food or get into arrears with utility payments.

Kendall, whose gaslighting of the sick and disabled knows no bounds, has made the disingenuous claim that the cuts are essential to help disabled people get back into the workplace. 

This ignores the fact that over a million workers claim PIP and many of them find this payment essential to help keep them in work. If these cuts comes into operation it will have the effect of forcing some disabled workers from the workplace.

As if this was not bad enough, for many highly vulnerable people the proposed cuts to PIP will cause immense stress and anxiety which may well drive some over the edge and lead to a rise in unnecessary suicides.

Of course it doesn’t have to be this way. As the UN committee has pointed out the government should raise extra revenue from those with the “broadest shoulders.” Its February report called on Starmer and Reeves to increase taxes on big business, increase capital gains tax and inheritance tax which are taxes mainly paid the by the rich. 

Besides this, the UN demanded that Labour take more effective action to address tax evasion and tax avoidance by the super rich of this country which was estimated at £35 billion for the financial year 2019/2020.

Following Labour’s announcement of £5bn in cuts to disability spending it is clear that the UK is completely failing to meet its international obligations under the Economic, Social and Cultural Covenants of the UN. Only a massive campaign of opposition to these killer cuts can force the red Tory government to abandon these evil cuts.

Join the protest against cuts to disability benefits today, March 26, in London.

Meet 11am, 10 Downing Street, and march to Parliament to lobby your MP.

Dylan Murphy is a member of Unite Community and Disabled People Against Cuts.