He sounds like he must be a sad, nasty individual to be doing something like that. Although you MAY not have a case in civil law, it might still be worth a chat with the police, to see what they say. Then, if it escalates (I hope it doesn't), the police will already be aware of it.
I may get pulled up on this, but I don't think you qualify for legal aid in cases of libel or slander so the police and CPS aren't really interested. You would have to bring a civil case to court and the cost can run into many £1000's and as such these cases tend to be the preserve of the rich and famous.
You would need a very strong case for a favourable court order against the accused and would need to prove you were financially compromised (through lack of earnings say) for any chance of compensation.
In the best case scenario, I don't think you could expect more than that but there's also the risk of losing the case.
Is it the case that you are in receipt of a state benefit but that the person you are talking about is telling people that you are not entitled to your benefit because he believes your disability claim to be false?
Making a false (and/or malicious ) allegation of benefit fraud to the authorities is unfortunately very common apparently, not sure if there is any recourse in law, sara might know though
If that's the situation dotty then the way the question was worded (spreading rumours - ie. unfounded accusations) I fail to see how anyone would be able to influence a decision put forward by an independent medical assessor that was approved by DWP.
Maybe I'm wrong...
Spreading rumours is extremely hard to prove. The character of rumours is that they change every time it is passed to someone else. What may have started as a completely innocent remark can become a viscious accusation by the time you hear it. How do you know it is 'him' that started it?
Any defamation action (slander or liable), will cost thousands. Most solicitors will want £10,000 to even start an action and suggest you budget for between £50-100,000 depending on whom your taking action against.
Only celebs, big corporate organisations or rich people can actually do anything about it.