Online ‘sickfluencers’ blasted by Conservatives for rise in mental health benefit claims

Helen Whately, the Conservatives’ Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, says online “sickfluencers” and the wider medicalisation of milder mental health conditions have contributed to rising benefit claims. She argues that some people with less severe conditions could be better supported into work, while help should be focused on those who are seriously ill or disabled.

Whately says past efforts to improve mental health care had an unintended effect, particularly on claims for anxiety and ADHD, and calls for more effective assessments. The Conservatives propose cutting the benefits bill by £36 billion, including £13.7 billion through tighter sickness and disability rules and changes to Personal Independence Payment eligibility. Labour disputes their record, citing a £33 billion rise in the welfare bill in the Conservatives’ final year, and says it is introducing employment support and further reforms.