Paralympian Richard Whitehead Hits Back at Badenoch's Use of Disabled Athletes to Justify Welfare Cuts

Richard Whitehead has run more than 100 marathons. When several people sent him a clip of Kemi Badenoch's speech on Tuesday, he watched it with his mouth open. The Conservative leader had cited "double amputees running marathons" as part of her case for £36bn in proposed welfare cuts, and Whitehead, a double amputee marathon runner, understood quickly whose example she was reaching for.

In the speech, Badenoch first acknowledged that there are "people who genuinely cannot work." She then argued that millions of people can and do contribute to the economy, to their families and to their communities, even when facing serious challenges. Double amputees run marathons, she said. People who are housebound do wonderful creative work from home. People with autism run some of the biggest tech companies in the world. She said the existing benefits system was enabling people to "live a life of dependency."

Whitehead's career is the kind that makes his name easy to reach for. He has set world records, won four Paralympic medals and completed endurance challenges to raise money for charity. He responded on social media almost at once. Disability, he wrote, should never be judged through isolated examples of individual achievement, but through an understanding of the barriers that people and families face every day. One person's ability to overcome significant challenges, he added, should never be used to justify withdrawing support from others.

Speaking afterward, he was blunter. He said he was "gobsmacked" that somebody's sporting success would be weaponised in this way, and called the language very divisive. He accused Badenoch of using "50 years of hard work" for her own ends without knowing who he is or what he does. When he stands on a podium, he said, he tries to use the moment to inspire and liberate people of all minorities. "She's just looked for a headline," he said.

He did not argue that the system should stay as it is. He said he understands that welfare needs a shake-up. His objection was to blanket removal of money from people who depend on it. For them, he said, the support is a lifeline, and there are families relying on it. He said the money was being taken from the most vulnerable, the people who actually need it.

The Conservatives have said part of the savings would come from ending disability living allowance payments to families of children with what they call "milder cases" of behavioural disorders, learning disabilities or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In her speech, Badenoch said that telling a young person their ADHD means they are defective and will never amount to anything is likely to be more destructive to their future than the condition itself.

Whitehead took issue with that terminology too. He said he would like a response from her on the words she used, and offered to explain what life is really like for people with neurodiversity and ADHD who are struggling. With that experience, he suggested, she might conclude she has got it wrong.

His offer is open. He has invited Badenoch to talk with him about disability, about how it has shaped his life, and about how he uses his platform to mentor others. He said she needs to reflect on how she communicates with the disabled community. Whether she takes up the invitation, and whether the plan to end allowances for families of children with milder conditions survives the criticism, is yet to be seen.