I have been looking at the scheme since about 2007 when my son first got DLA. It seems there is only one long term trend on the scheme. A loss of choice and vastly increasing costs, way over inflation.
When I first looked at the scheme you could have almost anything you wanted if you were willing to pay the difference in the overall cost of ownership when it came time to hand it back. Somewhere along the line this changed to a “top of the range” hybrid Astra costing over £19,000 to rent for 3 years.
Before all the Guardian readers jump on with “you should be grateful for that…” and “you can go and buy what you want yourself if you’re not happy with one of those little three wheeled turquoise cars…”, my point is that the trend of the scheme over the long term is.. less choice, poorer value. It’s that simple.
I think that fact is undeniable, so the next question is… If this continues, how long can the scheme really last, 5 years, 10 at the outside? It cannot be unnoticed by those administering the scheme or by government, therefore this is being allowed to happen by political choice.
Which leads me to one conclusion, the Conservatives have already presided over many suicides due to stress and a corrupt assessment system which incentivised the processing company to refuse claims, even if they are subsequently granted on appeal. Now they systematically by incompetence, or malevolence, reduce the meager benefits of the disabled by restricting choice in this way on the scheme under their watch.
I say this as a Tory voter, but it cannot be ignored, or dismissed. To say this is a forum about the scheme and politics has no place here, I believe is wrong. Politics is about how our lives are run and this is an issue.