MP wants better web service for disabled

A single application form would make applying for benefits much easier

Parliament has backed the idea of improving online forms for disabled people

A bill requiring the government to allow people with disabilities to complete a single online application form for a range of different benefits has received backing in Parliament.

Tory MP Jeremy Hunt says existing requirements for disabled people, some suffering from acquired brain injuries, to fill in several forms is humiliating for applicants and squanders money on official error, waste and fraud.

He says the Department of Work and Pensionsshould ‘get its computer systems to talk to each other’ to allow information to be entered just once.

‘Technology can transform the lives of the most socially disadvantaged. Why should the IT revolution benefit only the BlackBerry generation of adults or the MySpace generation of children and not benefit disabled people as well?’ he said.