DISABLED activists in Wales have condemned the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) green paper consultation on proposed benefit cuts as a “sham” and an “injustice.”

The event, held on Monday in Cardiff, was rescheduled after protests forced the DWP to move it from its original venue, which campaigners said was not accessible for disabled attendees.

But those at the new location said little had improved.

Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC) Cymru said just 15 disabled people had been permitted entry, under what they described as heavy security.

“We were conscious of the weight on our shoulders, representing 190,000 disabled people in Wales set to be impacted by these proposals, at the only in-person consultation event,” the group said.

“We repeatedly said this was not enough. We also made the point that we would have had no in-person consultation at all in Wales if our protests had not forced them to do better.

“And this was not much better.”

Disabled activist Joshua Reeves, who was denied entry, said he had arrived 10 minutes late to a venue that was “only technically accessible” and was left waiting outside in 30°C heat while the meeting began without him.

He said: “No-one came out to include me or others facing access barriers.

“That wasn’t a mistake, it was a message. It felt humiliating, like being silenced in plain sight.

“I showed up with lived experience, policy insight and a platform — and was still treated as an inconvenience.

“This event wasn’t about listening to disabled people. It was about rubber-stamping prewritten plans to dismantle our support systems.”

Mr Reeves urged the DWP to begin real engagement “by opening the door — literally and politically.”

The event was met with protest outside, as disabled people and trade unionists gathered in solidarity with those attending inside.