One in four Britons now believes they are disabled, including almost half of working-age people who says they have a mental illness, according to new statistics released amid a furious row over cuts to disability benefits.

Some 16.8 million people say they have a mental or physical impairment that ’causes substantial difficulty’ in their day-to-day life, according to government data.

The astonishing figure for the year 2023-24 is up from 11.9million people – 19 per cent of the population – in 2013-14, an increase of 4.9 million people.

Analysis of the DWP data also shows that the number of people claiming a mental health disability has risen by two million people since before the pandemic, from 3.8million to 5.8 million.

Some 48 per cent of working age people said they suffered from mental problems, making it the most common form of impairment.

It comes as Labour backbenchers threaten the ‘mother of all rebellions’ as they try to get ministers to scrap plans to make it harder to get disability benefits.

The move spearheaded by Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall is designed to save the Treasury £5billion and tackle the country’s major worklessness crisis.

Rates were higher in Scotland and Wales than in England, and more women say they are disabled than men.

It examined impairments rather than diagnosed medical conditions.

As well as those working-age adults claiming mental illness, more than a third (35 per cent’ said they had problems with ‘stamina, breathing or fatigue’.

Among children, almost six-in-10 (59 per cent) had ‘social or behavioural impairments’.

Wales had the highest rate of disability at 30 per cent, ahead of Scotland (28 per cent) Northern Ireland (25 per cent) and England (24 per cent)

The area of England with the highest rate was the North East (29 per cent) followed by the East Midlands (28 per cent). The lowest rate was in London (17 per cent).

More than 30 Labour backbenchers are said to be ready to vote against plans to make it harder to claim incapacity benefits and personal independence payments (Pip).

The changes will affect almost four million people with the aim of saving £5billion for the Treasury.

MPs from the left of the party have already signalled they will vote against any chances to benefits, which came alongside a gloomy Spring Statement by Ms Reeves yesterday.

More than 30 backbenchers are said to be ready to vote against the Chancellor’s plans to make it harder to claim incapacity benefits and personal independence payments (Pip).

An impact assessment of sweeping reforms to the benefits system was published alongside it, warning some 250,000 people – including 50,000 children – could fall into relative poverty as a result of the changes.

Lower-income households are also forecast to become £500 a year poorer over the next five years as a result of changes she announced, according to the Resolution Foundation.

It came as new figures revealed the number of children living in poverty in the UK has reached a record high of almost 4.5 million, in statistics branded ‘a source of national shame’.

Richard Burgon, who was suspended last year for opposing the two-child benefit cap, told Times Radio there would be ‘the mother of all rebellions’ if the changes were not dropped.

‘If the government doesn’t drop it, I’ll vote against it,’ he said. ‘This isn’t an issue just for the left of the parliamentary Labour Party. It’s not a left-right issue in the Labour Party. It’s a right or wrong issue.’