Government suppliers in the private sector are rushing to gain billions of pounds of new work from the overhaul of the benefits system, including the reassessment of the disability allowance.

A range of contracts from £ 300 million to £5 billion are expected to be awarded to companies including G4s, Serco and Capita over the coming months, as the coalition moves to rapidly expand its outsourcing drive.

Nina Zamo, policy and campaigns officer at charity Papworth Trust, said in regard to reform of disability support: “there were obviously concerns that it may replicate the problems with the Work Capability Assessment. This test for personal independent payments has to be fair.”