#welfare reforms

Just like the last time the Tories tried to reform PIP I will write a post on how to answer the consultation with explanations of how bad the reforms are. That might not be until the weekend, as due to how terrifying the leaks were and then how bad the actual reforms were on top of what they mean for thousands of people and my own claim, I'm very emotionally and mentally drained (that's putting it lightly). Plus, I'm still waiting on some templates as I'm sure this consultation's accessibility will be just as bad as the last one, and the questions will be just as demoralising.

Future bleak for children, families, and disabled – new report

My word, the Equality and Human Rights Commission must be working overtime. It has published a dramatic report titled ‘The cumulative impact of tax and welfare reforms’, just days after it submitted a report to the UN’s Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). (See also my story here).

That highlighted the fact that the UK’s social security system does not provide sufficient…

Disability campaigners shut down Westminster Bridge in solidarity with those killed by Tory austerity

Disabled campaigners have shut down Westminster Bridge to protest against the deaths of disabled people as a result of welfare cuts. Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC) were the group behind the protest and the bridge was blocked from midday with all traffic being brought to a halt. DPAC was formed in 2010 as a direct response to the introduction of the austerity program the Coalition government…

Second Independent Review of Personal Independence Payment assessment

    Any policy that is implemented with the expressed aim of “targeting those most in need” is invariably about cost cutting and reducing eligibility criteria for entitlement. The government were explicit in their statement of the original policy intent of  Personal Independence Payment. The government has already considered ways of reducing eligibility criteria for the daily living component of…

Is it 1:100 non-deserving people to those in need? I can imagine conservatives finding that realistic (it is not), but is this enough to deny human beings that honestly need your help to get by; a less than 1% chance? What about 1:50? Or 1:10? Even a 10% chance of any given person on support taking advantage of a ‘Welfare State’ seems like it shouldn’t be enough to discourage voters from lending aid to the 90% truly in need. If the only way for me to help a single mother feed her family is to equally support a thief, then that's what I’ll do.

A mother from Fife was left without money for a month because she stopped to take her four-year-old daughter to the toilet, making her 10 minutes late for an appointment.

The heartless benefit sanction has left a struggling mother unable to pay heating bills and relying on a food bank to feed her children.

Children’s charity Barnardo’s revealed the mum’s plight but have kept her personal details…