The majority of voters want to see the disability benefit bill cut, according to exclusive polling for T.
The new poll by BMG Research found 56 per cent support replacing some personal independence payment (PIP) cash benefits for disabled claimants with services such as physiotherapy, job-finding help and training courses.
It comes as one of Britain’s most respected economists, Paul Johnson, who headed the Institute for Fiscal Studies for 15 years, said PIP need to be cut to reduce the “huge” amount spent on benefits.
Why Trump has renamed Lake Ontario
Donald Trump has signed an executive order aiming to change the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America.
Here’s why, and whether the move is actually likely to work.
Split custody
One of North America’s five Great Lakes, Lake Ontario straddles both the United States and Canada; its northern and western shores sit in the Canadian province of Ontario while its southern and eastern shores fall in the US state of New York.
There is no universally recognised international body setting the names of international waters, but the lake’s name has its roots in the indigenous word “Ontarí’io”, often translated as “great lake”, and traces back several hundred years.
Tariff retaliation
- It comes after trade talks broke down between the two neighbouring nations last week.
- That led the US to impose new 50 per cent tariffs on $20bn (£14.7bn) worth of Canadian goods.
- In response, Canada is set to introduce “dollar for dollar” counter tariffs starting next month.
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This story in pictures
What has Canada said?
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney responded to the news by saying “things must be called by their name, and this lake is called Lake Ontario – today and forever”.
Carney also highlighted that the lake’s current name predates the formation of both the Canadian Confederation and the US Declaration of Independence.
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Will it work?
Trump’s executive order says it gives 30 days for the name change to be updated with the Geographic Names Information Service, the official repository of domestic geographic names in the United States.
While the US President generally has discretion over how their country recognises landmarks, other nations do not have to follow suit.
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August’s stunning Sturgeon Moon – in pictures
The August full moon, also called the Sturgeon Moon, lit up the night sky on Thursday. Here are a few of the best images.
The name’s origins
The August full moon, which reached its peak in the UK shortly after 5am on Friday 28 August, is also commonly referred to as the “Sturgeon Moon”.
Why?
That’s thanks to North American fishing tribes, who are understood to have dubbed it as such because the sturgeon species of fish appeared in number during this particular month.
Why was this Sturgeon Moon red?
In many parts of the world, including the UK, California and Australia, a partial lunar eclipse – whereby the Earth passed between the sun and the moon, placing the moon briefly in its shadow – was also observed.
As sunlight that passes through the Earth’s atmosphere is scattered, and red light can pass through in greater abundance due to its longer wavelength, the moon appeared to be tinged red, earning the phenomenon another nickname: ““.
Pictures around the world
Safe to see
- Visibility in many parts of the UK may not have been great, though.
- That’s due to both cloudy skies and the moon’s low positioning in the sky during the partial eclipse.
- Still, unlike the recent solar eclipse, this astronomical event is at least safe to observe with the naked eye.
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The latest as extra police deployed to Middlesbrough
Hundreds of extra police officers have been drafted in after a series of deadly incidents in Middlesbrough.
Series of violent incidents
A spate of violent incidents has occurred in Middlesbrough in recent days:
- On Saturday, a head-on car crash killed two police officers and five young men.
- On Wednesday, a house fire claimed the lives of a seven-year-old girl and her aunt.
- Other reported incidents have included a stabbing and properties being rammed by cars.
- Videos shared on social media appeared to show several cars on fire at a vigil on Thursday night for one of the men killed in the crash.
Multiple blazes
The house fire in Grangetown, east of Middlesbrough, on Wednesday killed Natalie McDonald, 34, and seven-year-old Valentina Foster and injured four others.
On Thursday evening, videos shared on social media seemingly showed several cars on fire in Haswell, County Durham, at a vigil where balloons were released in tribute to one of the men killed in the A66 crash.
Investigations ongoing
- Local police have not ruled out a link between the crash and the fatal house fire.
- Several arrests following the crash are reportedly part of investigations into alleged organised crime.
- Meanwhile, two men have been arrested on suspicion of murder in connection with the house fire.
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Car torching ‘unacceptable’
Meanwhile, Durham Constabulary said the behaviour of the crowd who set fire to a number of cars was “completely unacceptable”.
Police were called out to a private field shortly after 5.30pm on Thursday, where five vehicles were wrecked as a large crowd gathered to release balloons, flares, and fireworks.
Nobody was injured and the officers deemed it safest to let the vehicles burn-out. No arrests were made in connection with that incident.
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200 extra officers on the ground
Amid the incidents, which local MP Andy McDonald described as “terrorism”, councillors revealed 200 extra police officers from forces including the National Crime Agency were helping under-pressure Cleveland Police staff with investigations.
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People are saying they are going to their shops and not feeling safe to do so and feeling trapped in their own homes. That is just unacceptable. This is terrorism and we’ve got to have an appropriate response to deal with the people who are causing such mayhem in our communities and to allow people to lead their peaceful lives.
andy mcdonald, labour mp for middlesbrough and thornaby east
Thunderstorms and heavy rain could hit large parts of the country over the bank holiday weekend, forecasters have warned.
New weather warning
A new yellow warning has been issued by the Met Office for heavy showers and thunderstorms which could cause travel disruption and flooding across much of England and Wales.
The warning, in place from midday until 9pm on Friday, means flooding of some homes and businesses is likely, trains may be delayed and car journeys may take longer.
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Where could be affected?
- The thunderstorm warning covers most of Wales plus southwestern and northwestern England and both the East and West Midlands.
- Yorkshire and Humber could also be affected, as could much of eastern and central England, as well as London.
- Thunderstorms will bring 10-20mm of short-lived rain in a few places with the potential for 30-40mm where there are repeated downpours, the Met Office said.
Fresh flood alerts
Meanwhile, fresh flood warnings and alerts have been issued after dozens of homes were damaged by flood water following widespread drought conditions.
As of Friday lunchtime, there was a warning for expected flooding at Walverden Water at Nelson, Lancashire, while 10 areas were covered by Environment Agency flood alerts, meaning floods are possible.
An unsettled weekend
- The unsettled weather is set to continue through Monday.
- Some sunny spells are expected to be mixed with more heavy rain and possible thunderstorms.
- Fresh westerly winds will also make it feel blustery.
- Scotland is likely to be wettest on Monday while England and Wales can expect some sun and showers.
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Currys and Wickes join plug-in solar roll-out
The price of plug-in solar panels is expected to drop to under £600 in the weeks ahead, with more retailers beginning to sell the renewables kits.
First steps
British company UKSOL, selling its , has become the first supplier to meet regulatory compliance for the devices.
The 460W panels are on sale through Argos and builders’ merchant City Plumbing, with more retailers expected to follow after new rules allowing sales of plug-in solar products in the UK came into force on Thursday.
Wickes and Currys join solar rush
Wickes said it would be making plug-in solar available to its customers “in the coming weeks” while Currys said it was working to make these products “available to UK households as soon as possible, including through both our website and larger stores”.
Lidl, Asda, B&Q, Screwfix and Amazon have all expressed interest in the self-install kits but are yet to offer an update on their release.
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Price drops to come
- UKSOL said pre-orders were in the “low thousands” for its £699 single-panel kit and £999 two-panel kits.
- The company plans to launch four more models in October.
- This will include a slightly cheaper single-panel kit, priced from £599.
- The Government expects single-panel kits to “settle” between £400 and £600 as retailers roll them out.
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Watch more from The i Paper
The findings will add pressure for ministers to consider a more interventionist approach to the benefits system as they await the results of a major review of disability payments.
Danger of delay to welfare reforms
It also comes amid claims that Andy Burnham is not expected to bring forward major welfare changes in the autumn Budget.
reported on Friday that No 10 is instead understood to be waiting until both the Timms and Milburn reviews have concluded before setting out its plans. The paper claimed the Milburn report was due to be published next month, but will now be delivered after the Labour Party conference in October.
Ministers will then reportedly need time to consider the findings of both reviews before bringing forward primary legislation.
The polling will sharpen the political risk of delay. A number of Labour backbenchers rebelled against the Government’s previous welfare proposals last year, underlining the sensitivity of reform within the party. However, the results also help the Prime Minister in providing backing for his plans to cut the benefits bill by tying disability benefits for young people to training or voluntary work.
But in not outlining any welfare reforms in the Budget the Chancellor, John Healey, will be faced with having to raise more taxes, or make cuts elsewhere.
A senior Government source told that Burnham could tackle “one big issue at a time”, with his immediate focus on plugging a £4.7bn hole in the defence budget rather than the benefits bill.
It was reported on Friday that Healey was considering shelving his own target of spending 3 per cent of GDP on defence by 20230 -the issue over which he quit as Sir Keir Starmer’s defence secretary .
Voters open to changes
However, a No 10 source told The i Paper: “The timelines for Timms and Milburn have always been public and clear. They were always this autumn.”
The poll’s findings suggest that voters are open to changes that shift some support away from cash and towards practical help.
The results suggest there is support for a system that does more to help people who are able to work – including through physiotherapy, training and employment support.
The poll asked whether people would support or oppose claimants judged able to work being offered support services – such as physiotherapy, help finding a job or training courses – instead of some or all of their support being paid as cash.
The i Paper exclusively revealed in July that ministers were examining alternatives to cash payments as part of the Timms Review, the landmark examination of PIP led by disability minister Sir Stephen Timms.
PIP is a non-means-tested benefit designed to help those with disabilities or long-term health conditions meet the additional costs of their condition. More than four million people currently receive the benefit, which provides claimants a maximum of £194.60 per week.
Spending on PIP is forecast to reach more than £40bn a year by 2030 without changes, after ministers were forced to shelve an earlier attempt at welfare reform last year following a backbench rebellion.
The review’s interim report, published in July, concluded that PIP is no longer fit for purpose and has failed to keep pace with changes in disability, health and work over the past decade.
The i Paper also revealed last month that polling commissioned by the Labour-aligned Good Growth Foundation found significant support among existing PIP claimants for exchanging part of their cash benefit for practical services.
Around one in three said they would give up at least £50 a week for a menu of support options, while closer to half said they would trade £20 a week.
“People don’t just want cash – they want services that will help them get on in life,” said Louisa Dollimore, director of strategy at the Good Growth Foundation.
The findings come alongside a separate review by former Labour cabinet minister Alan Milburn into why growing numbers of young people who are not in education, employment or training (Neet).
Milburn’s interim report warned of a “generational fault line” and said the number of young people classed as Neet could reach 1.25 million within five years without reform.
It found that for every £1 currently spent on employment support for young people, around £25 goes to benefits.
BMG surveyed a representative sample of 1,579 GB adults between 25 and 26 August. BMG are members of the British Polling Council and abide by its rules.