Plans have recently been announced in Northern Ireland, and in England and Wales, to scrap the six-month rule. In future, anyone whose health professionals think they may die within one year will be able to get guaranteed fast access to the benefits they need.

The Scottish Government announced in 2018 that anyone diagnosed with a terminal illness would in future be able to get fast access to certain benefits. This new rule has now started to be introduced and will be rolled out in the coming years.

We'll continue to call on governments across the UK to make these changes as quickly as possible. We will also be calling for further changes to ensure all terminally ill people with longer life expectancies can get fast access to all the benefits they need.

Thank you to everyone who supported this campaign by signing our petition, contacting their local representatives and sharing the campaign online. Your support has helped make this happen.

What's the issue?

Many dying people have to spend time wading through red tape to get the welfare benefits they need.

This means things like form filling, attending interviews with benefits advisors and even going to coaching sessions to get them back to work.

They can only get quick and easy access to financial support if a doctor or nurse says they have less than six months to live.

Why does this matter?

Making people jump through hoops when they’re living with a terminal illness is not right, and it’s really insensitive.

Dying people shouldn’t have to waste time worrying about getting the support they need.

What we plan to do about it

Marie Curie and the Motor Neurone Disease (MND) Association   are calling for a change to the law.

The change would give everyone with a terminal illness quick and easy access to the benefits they need.

For the latest news on the campaign, follow #Scrap6Months on Twitter  .