Disability allowance 'a necessity, not luxury'

Plans to replace the disability living allowance (DLA) could lead to 85% of claimants cutting back on basics like food and transport, a charity has warned.

The Papworth Trust said there was also anxiety over the reassessment process.

The coalition is planning to replace the allowance, introduced in 1992 to help disabled people cope with the extra costs they face in their daily lives, with a new benefit called Personal Independence Payment.

Actor Julie Fernandez who suffers from brittle bone disease, told the BBC there are concerns because "the way the assessors work is utterly ridiculous".