Extra £1500 A Year For Visually Impaired People

25/03/09

Mary has praised the work of the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB), and welcomed the change to the Welfare Reform Bill, which will end years of discrimination and change the rules for Disability Living Allowance (DLA).

From April 2011 the 26,000 people across the UK who have a severe visual impairment will now receive an extra £29 per week or £1,500 a year.  This extra money, as part of the mobility component of DLA, will mean blind people will now be able to get out and about safely and independently. 

Lesley-Anne Alexander, Chief Executive of RNIB, said: "RNIB thanks the Government for committing to make this much needed change, as well as all the MPs who have supported the campaign and their blind constituents."  

Mary Creagh MP for Wakefield, said: "This is great news for the people of Wakefield who have visual impairments and I congratulate the tireless work that the RNIB have done for the past two and a half years.  I have been contacted by many of my constituents about this issue and I am very pleased that I can now tell them that change has come to the Welfare Reform Bill. Just because you have a disability does not mean you have to stay isolated.  This extra £29 per week will mean that they can get out and about and socialise with friends and family.  This is giving them a better quality of life."

Paulette Huntington, local constituent and Secretary of the Colne, Holme & Dearne Valleys Society for the Blind, said:  I am obviously delighted that the government has approved that visually impaired people can claim higher level support under DLA. We're looking forward to learning about the finer details of the proposals. We're very grateful for the hard work that Mary and other local MPs have done to help push this important decision forward."