Martin Gilmore v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions

Facts

Mr Martin Gilmore claimed Personal Independence Payment. He suffers from chronic graft versus host disease, steroid induced osteoporosis, Sicca syndrome and Raynaud's, conditions which, on the evidence before the tribunal, thicken his skin, cause sclerosis around his joints — particularly his feet — and affect his eyes. His claim having been refused, he appealed to the First-tier Tribunal (Social Entitlement Chamber), which sat at Bradford before Judge L McDonald, Ms J Gay and Mr C Saffer and dismissed his appeal on 17 November 2025, awarding him no points for the daily living activities of preparing food, washing and bathing, managing toilet needs or incontinence, and dressing and undressing, and no points for the mobility activity of moving around, finding he could stand and move more than 200 metres safely on the majority of days. In reaching those conclusions the tribunal treated a consultant haematologist's letter as of limited evidential value, read a clinical nurse specialist's letter as showing only that his wife accompanied him "just in case", and relied on its own observations of his hands during the hearing without putting them to him. Upper Tribunal Judge Wright granted limited permission to appeal, refusing permission on two grounds, and the Secretary of State supported the appeal.