Tories Pledge to Cut Benefits for Children with Milder Cases of ADHD

The Conservatives have pledged to save £2. 8bn a year by ending Disability Living Allowance (DLA) payments to families of children with 'milder cases' of behavioural disorders, learning difficulties or ADHD.

Shadow work and pensions secretary Helen Whately said the system risked putting children on a 'conveyor belt' towards a 'lifetime on benefits'.

The policy is one of a series of measures which the party says will save £36bn from the welfare budget.

Labour described the Tories' plan as a 'charter for homelessness and human misery that would push people into hardship and end up costing the state more).

DLA for children allows parents to claim between £30. 30 and £194. 60 per week to help cover the additional costs that come with raising a disabled child.

The child must either have difficulty getting about or need more looking after than a child of the same age who does not have a disability.

Under the party's plans, those with the most severe conditions, representing around 30% of cases, would continue to receive payments.

The remaining 70% would lose the money but instead receive support through mental health services and family hubs, into which the Conservatives have said they will invest £1bn.

Setting out the party's plans, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said: 'The reality is that millions of people can and do contribute to our economy, to their families, to their communities even when they face serious challenges. 'The Child Poverty Action Group said: 'These proposals would take the UK back to the dark ages, causing the biggest overnight increase in child poverty since records began. '

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