CAMBORNE, Redruth and Hayle's MP has been accused of turning his back on young deaf people who he represents.

In 2010, Conservative MP George Eustice signed the National Deaf Children's Society (NDCS) election pledge, which promised to "help deaf children in their constituency get the same opportunities as other children".

But last Wednesday, in the Houses of Parliament, he voted to cut benefits for deaf and other disabled children in the Welfare Reform Bill debate.

Kate and Martin Ballard-King, from St Day, are among the local families who feet let down.

They have a deaf son and are "angry and disappointed" at what they see as Mr Eustice's inconsistency.

Mrs Ballard-King said: "It's very frustrating, because he signed the NDCS pledge in 2010, he's been supporting us, he's been interested in deaf issues, he's visited us at Cornwall Deaf Centre in Camborne. We just don't understand why he voted this way."

The Ballard-Kings said the welfare reform cuts meant families like theirs, with deaf children, will not be able to afford essential equipment.

"It will mean struggling to meet the costs of appointments, some of which are out of the county," said Mrs Ballard-King.

"Children like ours who struggle socially will miss out on the extra activities that we fund through these benefits, which allow them to develop their confidence, social skills, language, etc.

"These are not luxuries – they are essentials, because quite often your child struggles to have friends at school. They don't get invited to parties or tea. It's heartbreaking."

Mr Eustice said the simplified system would align the support received for children and adults – focusing funding on the basis of need rather than age.

He said: "At the moment, once young people turn 16 they have to cope with a reduction in their allowance even though their condition is the same.

"It is obviously important that there is a long transitional period and I was reassured that the Government made clear that those children already in receipt of disability living allowance will continue to receive their current level of support.

"When it comes to helping deaf children, the most important thing is to ensure that they have the equipment they need from the NHS and that schools continue to support them by funding sign language lessons and speech therapy.

"The Government has this week announced that it will protect the special educational needs budget given to local authorities and I would like to see more co-operation between schools in Cornwall to strengthen the provision of services for children with hearing difficulties."

Five of Cornwall's six MPs voted in favour of the Welfare Reform Bill proposals. Only Andrew George voted against them.