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Theresa May was confronted over disability benefit cuts this afternoon, during a rare appearance in public.

Cathy Mohan, who lives in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, squared up to the Prime Minister, berating her for the Tories' brutal cuts to help for people with learning disabilities.

Cathy, who said she had a mild learning disability, said she wanted her Disability Living Allowance back, saying she couldn't survive on the Personal Independence Payments that replaced it.

"I can't live on £100 a month", she said.

Confronting Mrs May during a visit to Abingdon market, in Oxfordshire, she said: "Theresa, are you going to help people with learning disabilities? I'm being serious I want you to do something for us."

Are you Cathy or the other man below? Do you know either of them? Call 0207 510 6072 or email webnews@trinitymirror.com

The PM started to respond: "We've got a lot of plans for people with mental health in particular."

Scroll down for the full transcript

(Image: REUTERS)

But Cathy shot back: "And learning disabilities, because I've got mild learning disabilities and I haven't got a carer at the moment, and I'm angry. And I would like somebody to help me, because I can't do everything I want to do.

"I'm talking about everybody, not just me. I'm talking about everybody who's got mental health and learning disabilities. I want them not to have their money taken away from them and being crippled.

"The fat cats keep all the money and us lot get nothing.

The visibly uncomfortable Tory leader again started to respond, saying: "Cathy, we're going to do a number of things. Let me tell you just one thing..."

(Image: REUTERS)

But Cathy was having none of it, and went on barracking Mrs May.

She said: "Do you know what I want? I want my disability living allowance to come back. Not have PIPs and get nothing. I can't live on £100 a month. They just took it all away from me."

Mrs May scrambled for an answer: "What I can do is ensure that we're giving more help to people with mental health and learning disabilities."

But she rolled the Tory rationale for the cruel cuts to PIP - "We want to ensure when we look at the help we're giving to people with any disability that particularly we focus on those who are most in need."

PIP is replacing the old Disability Living Allowance (DLA) - but more than a fifth of previous DLA claimants are rejected for the new benefit.



The basic rate of PIP is just £55 a week.

Mencap’s parliamentary affairs support officer Ismail Kaji said: “I have a learning disability and I have disability benefits. Like Cathy, many people with a learning disability are scared of changes to their disability benefits and are understandably angry.

“I was really worried to hear Theresa May keep talking about mental health, when Cathy said she has a learning disability, which is not anything to do with mental health. That makes me think that Theresa May is unclear on the difference, and that is very worrying.

“Disability benefit cuts are a really big issue for everyone with a disability.

“I hope that whichever party wins this election, listens to people like Cathy and makes sure that people with a learning disability are able to have the support they need.”

(Image: AFP)

The Prime Minister was also confronted by a man over the government's Help to buy housing policy.

He asked: "Why is it that people with £100,000 were allowed to buy houses, when it was really set out as a good system for people that couldn't afford to pay that sort of money?"

According to analysis from the Resolution Foundation, low and middle income households represent less than one in five recipients of Help to Buy Equity Loans.



The median household income of those who benefited from the loans was £10,000 a year higher than the national median income, and nearly £20,000 higher than the average among those classed as low to middle income.

(Image: PA)

He added: "It wasn't meant for people on £100,000 wages. If you look at the latest statistics, it'll show there are quite a lot of them people got them, and the lower down people didn't get them. They didn't get so many, the people on 30 or 40 thousand."

"It was always said that people could twist the system, and people have got away with it."

The PM insisted Help to Buy was working, and many young people had managed to get on the housing ladder - including "tens of thousands" of low earners.

But the man was unimpressed.

(Image: REUTERS)

He said: "I still think rich people have jumped on the bandwagon and got houses that they shouldn't have got" - and that others "further down the scale" had lost out.

More than 200,000 people took advantage of Help to Buy during the three years since its launch in 2013. 180,000 of them were first time buyers and the average house price across the scheme was £191,000.

Full transcript of Theresa May's clash

Cathy: Theresa, are you going to help people with learning disabilities? I’m being serious, I want you to do something for us.

PM: We’ve got a lot of plans in place for people with mental health disabilities ...

Cathy: And learning disabilities

PM: And learning disabilities.

Cathy: Because I’ve got learning disabilities and I haven’t got a carer at the moment, and I’m angry and I would like somebody to help me ‘cos I can’t do everything that I want to do. I’m talking about everybody, not just me, I’m talking about for everybody that’s got mental ... and anybody that’s got learning disabilities, I want the not to have their money taken away from them and being crippled.

PM: We’re going to do a number of ...

Cathy: The fat cats keep the money and us lot get nothing.

PM: Cathy, we’re going to do a number of things. Let me just tell you one thing which isn’t about money.

Cathy: Do you know what I want? I want my, my, um, disability living allowance to come back, not have PIPs and get nothing. I can’t live on £100 a month. They took it all away from me.

PM: What I can do is ensure we’re giving more help to people with mental health ...

Cathy: And learning disabilities...

PM: And learning disabilities, and that’s what, exactly what we’ve done. We made an announcement the other day.

Cathy: And the people in the wheelchairs as well, and everybody. I’m - not just myself, for all of us.

PM: And that’s what we want to ensure, when we look at the help that we’re giving to people with any disability is that, to particularly focus on those that are most in need.