Now We'll See the True Face of the Tories: Budget July 2015

Heartless welfare cuts could form the centrepiece of the Chancellor's emergency budget next week, senior Liberal Democrats have warned.

It comes after reports earlier in the week revealed Tory plans to cut the Employment Support Allowance (ESA), which offers help to thousands of sick and disabled people.

Tom Brake, Lib Dem MP for Carshalton and Wallington, said the threat of more welfare cuts loomed large in Wednesday's budget, saying:

"For five years we won battle after battle to stop the Tories pushing through ideological cuts and it was worth it to ensure a fairer society.

"But now, freed from Liberal Democrat shackles, George Osborne and his band could merrily take the axe to benefits for those who need the most help.

"Whilst they reject any changes to taxes on the rich and won't even consider taking away a penny from the wealthiest pensioners. Same old story, same old Tories."

In the last Government, Tories threatened a string of welfare cuts, but were stopped in their tracks by the Lib Dems, including:

• Removing housing benefit for under-25s
• Cutting benefits for families with more than two children
• Imposing a two year freeze on benefits

Mike German, Liberal Democrat spokesperson for work and pensions in the House of Lords, said the Tories were already starting to show their true colours.

He said: "Threats to strip away the ESA from thousands of sick and disabled people earlier this week was a clear sign of the nasty party shifting up a gear.

"It showed that - on their own in government - the Conservatives are dead set on balancing the books on the backs of the vulnerable and poor.

"They were open about a proposed £12bn in welfare cuts, but less clear on where the axe would fall.

"Now we are starting to see who will suffer the full force of their heartless decisions."

The Tories have regularly attempted to place stringent cuts on the some of the neediest in society on to the political agenda throughout their time in government. But, time and again, Liberal Democrats blocked Tory changes:

Tories wanted to… remove housing benefit for under-25s:

David Cameron announced plans in June 2012 to strip people aged 25 or under of the right to claim housing benefit, claiming the existing system was sending out 'strange signals' on working, housing and families. The BBC claimed that the policy "was a clear appeal to core Tory voters and MPs who have criticised Mr Cameron for failing to promote Conservative values while in coalition with the Liberal Democrats".

How we stopped it:

We made it clear from the day Cameron announced the policy that it was "Conservative thinking" that did not reflect coalition policy. Within six months George Osborne announced he would have to drop the plans ahead of his Autumn Statement after the Liberal Democrats had vetoed them. Liberal Democrat MP Greg Mulholland said: "The Lib Dems would not stand for cutting housing benefits for under 25-year-olds which would not only be unjust and unfair but would have unacceptable consequences for many young people."

Tories wanted to… remove benefits from families with more than two children

In October 2012 Welfare Secretary Iain Duncan Smith proposed that jobless couples with more than two children would have benefit payments limited, in a move that was widely perceived as an attempt to socially engineer society. He told the Daily Mail: "We want to support people if they have children when they are out of work, of course. But can there not be a limit to the fact that really you need to remember you need to cut your cloth in accordance with what capabilities and what finances you have?"

How we stopped it:

As soon as Iain Duncan Smith announced his plans, Liberal Democrats described them simply as "Tory kite-flying". Within two days we made it clear that we would block any plans the Conservatives came forward with. The Telegraph reported: "A senior Lib Dem source insisted the party had not accepted Mr Duncan Smith's suggestion and it was not government policy. The source added: 'The Lib Dems aren't keen on it at all'.

Tories wanted to… cut the welfare budget by £10bn

George Osborne announced in August 2012 that he wanted £10bn of additional welfare cuts, squaring it with Iain Duncan Smith in return for allowing Universal Credit to go ahead.

How we stopped it:

Within months, Nick Clegg had announced that Liberal Democrats would not support Osborne's slashing of welfare. He told Radio 5 that Liberal Democrats had "knocked on the head" the Chancellor's plans. And indeed so it came to be, with the Chancellor being limited in his Autumn Statement to announcing just £3.8bn of welfare savings.

Tories wanted to… impose two year freeze on benefits

In both 2011 and 2012 George Osborne announced he wanted a two-year freeze for state benefits, despite a Coalition agreement that they would rise in line with inflation.

How we stopped it:

Nick Clegg stopped it in 2011, ensuring benefits rose by 5.2% - and he blocked it in 2012, ensuring benefits were uprated by 1%. In 2013 Nick reprimanded the Tories over their rhetoric on welfare, criticising language like "shirkers versus strivers" and "undeserving poor". In the end Osborne was forced to accept he would only get his benefits freeze if the Conservatives won a majority after May.

Tories wanted to… remove mobility component of Disability Living Allowance

The Conservatives wanted to axe the 'mobility' part of the Disability Living Allowance, worth £51 a week, for those in residential care. They argued that recipients were being double funded through additional support from their local authority. The Tories wanted to save £135m through removing this funding stream.

How we stopped it:

Liberal Democrat conference voted for the plan to be dropped in spring 2011. We then spent nine months persuading the Conservatives to drop their plans, working with charities to protect the 80,000 disabled people under threat

Tories wanted to… keep people waiting six months before they could claim PIP

The Tories announced in 2011 that they wanted to switch Disability Living Allowance into newly-formed Personal Independence Payments as part of a Welfare Bill. The Tories claimed this would significantly reduce welfare spending but some provisions were castigated by campaigners, such as forcing seriously ill or disabled people to wait six months before becoming eligible for PIPs

How we stopped it:

Liberal Democrat peers forced the Tories into making a series of concessions ahead of the switch from DLA to PIP. These included that PIPs would be continually monitored and reviewed to ensure the new process is working effectively and appropriately. Another significant concession was to halve the time seriously disabled people will have to wait to be eligible for PIP from six months to three months.