Benefits claimants who say they are suicidal ‘asked in fit to work assessments why they haven’t killed themselves’

Labour MP Ruth George says people end up 'curled up crying on the floor' during the rigorous tests

A parliamentary committee has heard that benefit claimants who tell fit-to-work assessors they are suicidal, have been asked: “Why haven’t you killed yourself then?”

Labour MP Ruth George claimed that the vulnerable people were being asked the question during the rigorous tests to see if their payments will continue. Some had ended up “curled up crying on the floor”, she said.

Assessors refused to look at them despite that they obviously displayed serious mental health conditions and simply posed the same question again, she added.

“One of the standard questions in the Work Capability Assessment for people with serious mental health conditions who’ve had suicidal thoughts is ‘why haven’t you killed yourself then’,” she told the Commons Work and Pensions Committee.

Addressing disabilities minister Sarah Newton, she asked: “Do you think that is an appropriate question to assess someone’s capability to work?”

Ms Newton replied that it was "totally unacceptable.”

She said it was “really important” that officials asked benefit claimants who appeared to have a serious mental health condition if they had thoughts about killing themselves.

Ms Newton added the Department for Work and Pensions “want to give people a good customer experience”.

MPs on the committee also criticised the government for spending more than £700m a year – the bulk of it to private firms – to operate sickness and disability benefits.

Labour MP Neil Coyle told Ms Newton: “This is a £700million-a-year administration system for benefits that are worth between a maximum of £110 and £140 a week.

“How is this mugging of the taxpayer that is destroying the lives of thousands of disabled people fair?”

Ms Newton replied that she did not recognised what he said about "mugging the taxpayer”.

But she nonetheless pledged “improve” it.