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Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People @gmcdp.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

See you tomorrow (Sat 22nd Aug) 1 - 4pm. Bembe Cafe Pavilion in Alexandra Park M16 Weather is sunny intervals and light winds, 20 C, no rain and no heatwave! You are welcome to bring picnic rugs and your own food, we will also provide food.

Disability Pride flag colours and text GMCDP Disability Justice Picnic - Disability Pride Weekend
Saturday, August 22, 2026 from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM (BST)

Bembe Cafe

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Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People @gmcdp.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

GM Disability Justice Picnic 1-4pm, Saturday 22nd August Alexandra Park Pavilion & Cafe M16 8PJ Food, Drink, games, socialising, open mic.

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Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People @gmcdp.bsky.social · 01/04/2026

#EducateDontSegregate #InclusiveEducation Join us in-person or online for the launch of a regional Movement for Inclusive Education in Manchester. Thursday, 30 April 2026 11:30am - 6pm International Anthony Burgess Foundation, Manchester M1 5BY www.allfie.org.uk/events/build...

Join us in-person or online for the launch of a regional Movement for Inclusive Education in Manchester.

Thursday, 30 April 2026 11:30am - 6pm
International Anthony
Burgess Foundation, Manchester M1 5BY
Link to book for In-person & online in our bio

We demand immediate action. STOP:
- Funding structures that favour segregated schooling
Cuts to SEND resources in mainstream schools
- Use of force, restraint, and seclusion in educational settings
- Systemic barriers that exclude Disabled people
- Government failure to uphold its commitment under the UNCRPD to Inclusive Education

#EducateDontSegregate #InclusiveEducation

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Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People @gmcdp.bsky.social · 08/07/2025

Tell your MP to vote against the Universal Credit (PIP) Bill, it will put 50,000 disabled people into poverty. Also ask them to support these Amendments:

Amendments 14 & 15 by Neil Duncan-Jordan MP - These crucial amendments would remove the dangerous UC cuts from the bill, leaving the bill as an uprating of UC.

Amendment 2(a) by Richard Burgon MP - This would eliminate the punitive change to UC Health, which proposes a lower rate for all but those in the new serious conditions criteria group.

Amendment NC10 by Nadia Whittome MP - This would ensure that there is a human rights analysis of the bill, which has been completely absent thus far.

Amendment NC11 by Dr Marie Tidball MP - which would put a 12-month timeline on the ‘Timms Review’ and make it accountable to MPs by requiring a vote for any of its recommendations to be implemented.

Amendment NC8 by John McDonnell - which prevents any proposal from the Timms review adversely affecting anyone’s eligibility for PIP.

Amendment by Debbie Abrahams (19) - which changes the date on which the universal credit cuts start, from April 2026 to November 2026.

Amendment NC4 by Stella Creasy - which calls for a duty to have due regard to the UN Convention on the Rights of Disabled People in exercising any power under this Act.

Amendment by Kirsty Blackman (33) - which removes the requirement that, for the severe conditions criteria, a diagnosis must have been made by a health professional providing NHS services.

Amendment by Graeme Downie (17) - which allows for the severe conditions criteria to apply to claimants who have fluctuating conditions, such as Parkinson’s or multiple sclerosis.

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Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People @gmcdp.bsky.social · 20/06/2025

The Greater Manchester Disabled People’s Panel (GMDPP) statement on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill: gmdisabledpeoplespanel.com/2024/11/27/g...

The GM Disabled People’s Panel is comprised of 16 organisations led by disabled people, we have a breadth of views across our organisations on Assisted Dying. However on the specific matter of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill we believe now is the wrong time to be supporting such legislation. With ongoing austerity, our Social Care, Social Security, and Healthcare systems are in perpetual crisis with unmet need increasing. Disabled People are not getting the support they need to live. As Covid showed us, medical professionals have a low level of understanding of the realities of disabled people’s lives and we were disproportionately the greatest number of dead from the pandemic. We have also been through two United Nations examinations that have found the UK is committing continued grave and systemic human rights abuses of disabled people. Until we can rely on our needs and Rights being met to thrive in society, the risk from this Bill of coerced euthanasia is too great to accept.

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Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People @gmcdp.bsky.social · 06/06/2025

Need help and peer support with your Social Security/DWP? Come along to Benefit Tips Social Thurs 12th June 6-9pm at Proud Place or online, register here gmcdp.com/civicrm/even... Location of Proud Place what3words.com/trees.cling....

Two yellow speech bubbles on white backdrop, in the bubbles are GMCDP cogs.

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Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People @gmcdp.bsky.social · 22/05/2025

We have just published a joint letter with GM Equality Panel members opposing the DWP Pathways to Work Green Paper, please promote it across your networks and media: Full text with references and Easy Read at link gmdisabledpeoplespanel.com/2025/05/22/g...

Open Letter to All Greater Manchester MPs Regarding the Government’s Green Paper on Benefits
20 May 2025
To the Members of Parliament representing Greater Manchester,
We are writing to you as members of the Greater Manchester Equality Panels regarding the Government’s recent ‘Pathways to Work’ Green Paper on changes to benefits. We are deeply concerned that the proposals outlined in the Green Paper risk undermining the dignity, security, and well-being of the very people the social security system was created to support. All the proposed policies concentrate on supply side workforce activation and none address the real problem of demand side labour market conditions. We are concerned that the language being used to talk about the Green Paper will have a negative impact on discrimination against disabled people. We already have seen a rise in disability hate crimes since 2010.
We now have both the Office for Budget Responsibility impact assessment and responses to Freedom of Information requests, that show 1.3 Million disabled people will lose Personal Independence Payment (PIP) Daily Living and 80% of Universal Credit Health claimants (Limited Capability to Work Related Activity (LCWRA) & LCWRA+PIP) would lose all entitlement, raising the total facing a loss of income to 2 million disabled people . The re-arrangement of Universal Credit conditionality will see 600,000 disabled people who cannot work subject to being sanctioned for not looking for and finding work. Disabled people are already the majority of foodbank users, these proposals will see that number likely rise by several hundred thousand. We also know from Professor Ben Geiger that the actual level of cuts amounts to £9 Billion . The impact on employment is not known and will likely not be published until the autumn, meaning no one can make informed decisions about the stated aspirations that this will raise

employment. There is a great deal of existing data which suggests it will not, beyond a few percentage points . This raises serious questions about fairness, honesty, lack of peer reviewed independent evidence, and long-term cumulative social impact. We are concerned about the impact on the Government priorities of growth and reducing National Health Service (NHS) waiting lists. In a region like Greater Manchester, where communities are already grappling with inequalities, entrenched poverty, and continuing austerity, these changes will disproportionately harm the people who are already most excluded.
The United Nations has twice reported on the conditions for disabled people in the UK, finding that there were ‘grave and systemic’ violations of our human rights , with further regression. This Green Paper will exacerbate those abuses
We highlight the following key concerns:
1. Disability and Health Assessments
The proposed tightening of eligibility criteria for Personal Independence Payments (PIP) and Work Capability Assessment (WCA) (before its abolition, leaving a revamped PIP assessment as a single gateway to health elements of Universal Credit) risks excluding individuals with genuine and complex needs, particularly those with invisible or fluctuating conditions. Many of these individuals already struggle to navigate an opaque and stressful process, that has contributed towards over 600 suicides in just 3 years .
2. Mental Health Oversight
The suggestion that mental health issues are being “over-diagnosed” within the benefits system can be stigmatizing . Mental health is a critical public health issue and dismissing it as less ‘deserving’ of support perpetuates harmful stereotypes.
3. Conditionality and Sanctions
Proposals to expand conditionality and increase sanctions are

counterproductive. Evidence—including from the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) itself—shows that sanctions do not lead to better employment outcomes, but do exacerbate hardship, debt, and mental distress .
4. Consultation Process
There are 22 policies announced but the consultation only seeks to discuss half of these with the most impactful measures instead being put into a parliamentary bill.
We are also concerned that the consultation process may not be fully inclusive, particularly of disabled individuals, carers, disabled people’s organisations, and frontline support workers. Any meaningful reform must be co-designed with those most affected.
As MPs elected to serve the people of Greater Manchester, we urge you to:
• Vote against the proposed changes.
• Commit to co-producing a disability strategy with disabled people as outlined on the DPO Forum Manifesto .
• Advocate for evidence and rights-based policies that reflect the lived experience of your constituents and the reality of the Social Model of Disability .
We believe a Social Security system should empower, not penalise. It should be built on trust, support, and to remove the disabling extra costs of disability which are on average are £1,010 a month.
We hope you will raise these concerns in Parliament and in your work locally, and we would be happy meet with you to engage with you further on this urgent matter.
Yours sincerely,

Greater Manchester Disabled People’s Panel
Greater Manchester Equality Alliance

Greater Manchester Disabled People’s Panel
Greater Manchester Equality Alliance
LGBTQ+ Equality Panel
Greater Manchester Older People’s Equality Panel
Greater Manchester Race Equality Panel
GMCA Women and Girl’s Equality Panel
Youth Combined Authority

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Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People @gmcdp.bsky.social · 14/04/2025

GM Disabled People’s Panel launches Feeling Good! Small grants up to £5,000 to support the Mental Wellbeing of Disabled People. Read our Report: gmdisabledpeoplespanel.com/gm-mental-we... Deadline to apply- Mon 7th July. tinyurl.com/MHWGDP25

Poster for the grants with sunbeams and drawings of a group of diverse disabled people in a city park with a rainbow hot air ballon in the sky.

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Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People @gmcdp.bsky.social · 27/03/2025

What’s one change you want for disabled people in the UK? In July we celebrate 40 years of fighting for disability rights. Help us build a vision for the future by sharing your thoughts in a short vid. Be part of our #GMCDP40 campaign +get your message out there! More info: gmcdp.com/call-videos-...

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Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People @gmcdp.bsky.social · 18/03/2025

We have joined with other DPO’s across England to oppose the DWP Green Paper. There is also a protest that has been called in Manchester on Tuesday 1st April 12 noon outside Boots, 32 Market Street, M1 1PL w3w.co/bared.fresh....

Community Day
of Action
NO RETURN TO AUSTERITY NO CUTS TO BENEFITS
ENERGY FOR ALL
Tuesday 1st April 12.00pm
Meet outside Boots, 32 Market St, Mcr.
ALL WELCOME

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Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People @gmcdp.bsky.social · 17/03/2025

There is endless repetition of the claim by certain politicians and media that disability benefit spending is out of control, so let's look at the Office for Budget Responsibility's graph and figures. The claim is untrue. obr.uk/docs/dlm_upl...

Bar chart showing welfare spending as proportion of GDP, revealing welfare spending is stable. The figures are:

2010-11: 12.0%

2011-12: 12.0

2012-13: 12.1

2013-14: 11.7

2014-15: 11.5

2015-16: 11.3

2016-17: 10.9

2017-18: 10.5

2018-19: 10.3%

2019-20: 10.2

2020-21: 11.9

2021-22: 10.4

2022-23: 10.0

2023-24: 10.9%

Forecast:

2024-25: 11.1%

2025-26: 11.1

2026-27: 11.1

2027-28: 11.0

2028-29: 11.0

2029-30: 11.1%

OBR Economic And Fiscal Outlook
Page 109 chart 5.2
Here are the stats which show 'welfare spending as a share of GDP'.

This includes pensions, PIP, ESA, UC, tax credits, housing benefit, ESA and carer’s allowance.

2010-11: 12.0%

2011-12: 12.0

2012-13: 12.1

2013-14: 11.7

2014-15: 11.5

2015-16: 11.3

2016-17: 10.9

2017-18: 10.5

2018-19: 10.3%

2019-20: 10.2

2020-21: 11.9

2021-22: 10.4

2022-23: 10.0

2023-24: 10.9%

Forecast:

2024-25: 11.1%

2025-26: 11.1

2026-27: 11.1

2027-28: 11.0

2028-29: 11.0

2029-30: 11.1%

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Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People @gmcdp.bsky.social · 13/03/2025

🎥 GMCDP is 40! 🎉 We want YOU to be part of it! Send a 30-sec video sharing one change you want for disabled people in the UK. We'll feature 40 videos this July! 📅 Deadline: 15 April More info: gmcdp.com/call-videos-... #GMCDP40 #NothingAboutUsWithoutUs

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Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People @gmcdp.bsky.social · 04/02/2025

Benefits Tips Social! Advice, Peer support, Networking, and Creativity to help you deal with the Benefits system. Online Thursday 13th Feb 6 - 9pm Book now! gmcdp.com/civicrm/even...

Two GMCDP speech bubble graphics with cogs inside on yellow background.

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Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People @gmcdp.bsky.social · 30/01/2025

Artificial Intelligence and Disability Conference Thurs 20th March, People's History Museum & Online with Keynote Speaker Dr Abeba Birhane @abeba.bsky.social Book Now! gmcdp.com/civicrm/even...

GMCDP graphic, yellow background with an eye in black and white with ten spoked iris at centre.

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Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People @gmcdp.bsky.social · 28/11/2024

We are gravely concerned by both the content of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill brought forward by Kim Leadbeater MP, and due for its second reading on 29/11/2024, and by the way it has been brought forward. Read More: gmcdp.com/campaigning Or images with alt text below in 3 parts

Assist Us to Live:
Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People’s Statement on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill
Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People (GMCDP) are gravely concerned by both the content of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill - TIA Bill - brought forward by Kim Leadbeater MP, and due for its second reading on 29/11/2024, and by the way it has been brought forward. We urge all MPs in Greater Manchester to read the TIA Bill carefully and cautiously, and to engage seriously with the concerns of local disabled people.
The TIA Bill clearly seeks to address legitimate grievances brought forward by people at the end of their lives. Trust in the quality and provision of palliative care is shockingly low, and the number of terminally ill people dying in poverty has increased dramatically over the last five years. As disabled people, we know that the quality and availability of support services and housing dramatically reduce someone’s autonomy to receive medical care in a way that supports their lifestyle and personal relationships. It is right and understandable that terminally ill people can no longer tolerate this intolerable situation. The question for MPs is: will they simply offer terminally ill people a way out of life, or will they try to change the things that make life unbearable for dying people?
In its current form, the TIA Bill provides weak safeguards against abuse. As Alex Ruck Keen KC has pointed out, advocates have yet to demonstrate a convincing way to integrate decisions about early death into the UK’s Mental Capacity framework – raising concerns that either reduced capacity could be missed by medical professionals and doctors, or that decisions to die could be supported by professionals in ways the TIA Bill does not foresee. The TIA Bill does not convincingly address these concerns.

Likewise, Sir James Munby (former President of the High Court’s Family Division) has warned that the TIA Bill does not go far enough to safeguard against coercion. While the TIA Bill insists on a High Court Judge approving requests for assisted death; it lays out no requirement for this judge to take evidence from the patient or their family, to be transparent about the reasons for their decision, or to be subject to usual legal appeal processes. This approach both exacerbates the risk of vulnerable people being pressured to end their lives, and undermines the relationship between the High Court and Court of Appeal in Britain’s constitutional settlement.
We do not believe these concerns can be adequately addressed by a Private Member’s Bill – which necessarily receives less legal scrutiny and weaker integration into other laws than a Government Bill. The TIA Bill touches quite literally on life and death; but also on the basic principles of our legal system. It should not, to quote Ruck Keene KC, be decided ‘on the fly’.
We are further concerned by the impact that normalising “assisted dying" will have on the quality of palliative and other healthcare. The quality of palliative care has either stagnated or gotten worse since the introduction of similar laws in Belgium and Canada, access to palliative care for eligible Australians has been found to be 'inadequate', and 10% of requests for medical

assistance to end life in the Netherlands are linked to ‘suboptimal palliative care’. While we have no desire to debate laws in other countries, rather than one presented to Parliament; we believe that proponents of the TIA Bill are obliged to explain what effect it will have on NHS spending for terminally ill and disabled people – especially given the concerns raised by the Minister of Health on this issue.
We agree with proponents of the TIA Bill that terminally ill people deserve greater autonomy and greater assistance at the end of their lives. They deserve to receive good quality medical and social care: free at the point of use, and delivered in ways that help them live their lives as they choose. They deserve not to have to worry about poverty, what will happen to their family after they go, or whether pain relief will come too late if their condition worsens out of normal working hours. They deserve to live the last weeks of their lives in their homes, surrounded by people they love. Everyone deserves choice and control over their lives right up to its final moments. We believe that granting people dignity is about more than one choice – whether to die now, or not. It is about empowering them to make all the choices non-disabled people take for granted every day. The state can help people empower themselves by looking seriously at radical reform to social care and mental health care, NHS funding, access adaptations to housing, and the rate of benefits paid to terminally ill people and their family carers. We believe that this will provide a more adequate solution to the untenable position terminally ill people have been placed in.

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Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People @gmcdp.bsky.social · 27/11/2024

The Greater Manchester Disabled People’s Panel (GMDPP) statement on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill: gmdisabledpeoplespanel.com/2024/11/27/g...

The Greater Manchester Disabled People’s Panel (GMDPP) statement on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill:

The GM Disabled People’s Panel is comprised of 16 organisations led by disabled people, we have a breadth of views across our organisations on Assisted Dying. However on the specific matter of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill we believe now is the wrong time to be supporting such legislation. With ongoing austerity, our Social Care, Social Security, and Healthcare systems are in perpetual crisis with unmet need increasing. Disabled People are not getting the support they need to live. As Covid showed us, medical professionals have a low level of understanding of the realities of disabled people’s lives and we were disproportionately the greatest number of dead from the pandemic. We have also been through two United Nations examinations that have found the UK is committing continued grave and systemic human rights abuses of disabled people. Until we can rely on our needs and Rights being met to thrive in society, the risk from this Bill of coerced euthanasia is too great to accept.

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