In a major turnaround, Labour has abandoned the controversial 4-point rule for Personal Independence Payment (PIP), just hours before a critical vote on the Universal Credit and PIP Reform Bill.
This rule would have required claimants to score at least 4 points in a single daily living activity to qualify for PIP — a move that could have disqualified thousands of disabled people. But following pressure from campaigners, MPs, and the disabled community, Clause 5 (the 4-point rule) was officially dropped from the bill.
Labour MP Stephen Timms confirmed the U-turn in Parliament, stating:
“We are going to remove Clause 5 from the bill at committee stage. We will move directly to the wider review — now known as the Timms Review — and only make changes to PIP eligibility following that process.”
What this means right now:
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The 4-point rule is no longer in the bill.
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The bill no longer affects PIP eligibility.
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The focus has shifted to changes in Universal Credit, specifically to future recipients of the UC health element and new criteria around “severe conditions.”
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📅 The Timms Review will now shape the future of PIP, with results expected by Autumn 2026.
Is It a Total Victory?
Not quite. There’s still concern over how future PIP changes might be implemented — especially if the government tries to pass them via secondary legislation, which MPs can’t amend or debate in full. This could become a key battleground when the bill returns for its third reading.
Still, for now, this is a major win for disabled campaigners and a significant political climbdown for Labour. While the battle isn’t over, the 4-point rule — which caused fear and confusion for so many — has been sidelined indefinitely.
Stay tuned. The Timms Review may shape the next chapter — and we’ll be watching closely.
The 4-point PIP rule (Clause 5) was officially removed on 1st July 2025, during the second reading of the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill in the House of Commons.
Stephen Timms announced, just over an hour before the final vote, that Clause 5 would be removed at the committee stage — and the bill would proceed without any changes to PIP eligibility. This was done in response to pressure from MPs, campaigners, and the public, after 49 Labour MPs rebelled and signalled they would vote against the bill.
So while the formal removal happens at committee stage, the public commitment and political decision to remove it happened on 1 July 2025.
