When is rape consensual? When it’s between a SERCO guard and an inmate

Reblogged from Pride’s Purge

(not satire - it's SERCO!)

Sometimes I read something which makes my jaw drop. And this one seems to have passed most people by.

A recent report highlighted how detainees at Yarl's Wood immigration centre face sexual abuse by guards employed by SERCO.

Here's a Guardian article about it:

Detainees at Yarl's Wood immigration centre 'facing sexual abuse'

The whole report is pretty depressing but it was a comment on the allegations by the UK Border Agency's professional standards unit which made my jaw drop.

It said the alleged victim did not indicate to investigators that her sexual contact with guards was "anything other than consensual".

Anything other than consensual? How can sexual relations between an inmate under lock and key and her guard be 'consensual'?

SERCO even admit three of its Yarl's Wood guards have been dismissed after allegations of "sexually inappropriate behaviour" with inmates.

I suppose most people would regard rape as being a bit more than "sexually inapproriate behaviour."

But only dismissed? Why not prosecuted?

​Clearly - under UK law - rape is considered to be consensual now if it's between an inmate and a SERCO employee.



Related articles by Tom Pride:

SERCO wins bid to run UK as Victorian theme park

Third-World Britain – over 25% of parents struggling to feed kids during school holidays

A4e Claims Success In Getting Taxpayers Money Off Benefits & Into Its Own Pockets

Workfare = Workhouse?

Did you know the government is subsidising McDonald’s with taxpayers money – your money?

The government has finally done something so outrageous even I can’t be bothered to satirise it

Struggling to find words to describe this government? Here’s a list to help you.

Department of Work & Pensions – Death No Reason Not To Be Classified As ‘Fit For Work’

Government – Light-Touch Regulation Of The Disabled To Blame For Economic Crisis

Letters: My Best Friend Hung Himself After Cost Of Living Became Too Much

My best friend Daniel hung himself three days ago. He was a kind and gentle soul who had lived in London for almost 15 years. He had always managed to support himself on limited means. He was a man of simple pleasures. I had never known him to need any support from the welfare state or anyone else for that matter. 

But recently as the cost of living in London increased exponentially, directly as a result of successive government’s savaging of affordable housing. Selling council homes off en mass to private landlords, encouraging the worlds elite to funnel their billions into the London property market, and through our despicable tax haven ‘crown dependencies’. Dan was unable to continue to cover the ever-increasing costs of accommodation, as work became harder to find and the work that he did get continued to pay the same wages they had 15 years previous. 

Dan became increasingly depressed, but there was no tonic our national health service could provide other than ever-increasing dosages of antidepressants and a pat on the shoulder. The ideological destruction of our most cherished service, our universal healthcare, meant that the resources weren’t available for doctors to spend the time with him and care for him in the way that he deserved. 

Meanwhile the welfare state judged him ‘fit to work’, despite the fact he was increasingly becoming a danger to himself. And offered no help despite the fact he was being evicted from his flat due to being in arrears. Eventually the burden of having to rely on handouts from friends and family became too much for him. He was a proud and generous soul. 

The relentless juggernaut of the free market, and the ideological destruction of the post war consensus has diminished our humanity. Our commitment to each other and to the weakest members of society has been slowly eroded. And for what? Progress? Growth? We have all been sold a monumental lie, and as result can only look forward to a darker future. 

For me personally, I have lost more than just a friend, but a brother. And the world has lost one of the good guys. 

Matt (surname not provided)

Source

TUC uncovers £67,000 pensions postcode lottery

A woman in her late 40s from East Dorset can expect to receive £67,000 more in state pension when she retires, compared to a women of the same age living in Corby, due to a widening gap in life expectancies and a rising state pension age, according to a new report published today by the TUC.

The report looks at life expectancy projections by gender, occupation and geographical area, and their effect on the amount of state pension people are set to receive. The state pension age is due to rise to 66 between 2018 and 2020 and to 67 between 2026 and 2028.

The research shows that by 2028 a woman living in East Dorset – the area of the UK with the longest post-65 life expectancy for both men and women – can expect to live nine years longer than a woman in Corby (the area with the shortest life expectancy) when they retire. This state pension divide works out at £67,000 over their lifetime. The state pension divide for men living in East Dorset and Manchester (the area with the shortest male post-65 life expectancy) will be £53,000.

This state pension divide will also grow for different types of workers. A female managerial or professional worker retiring in 2028 can expect to live 3.8 years longer than a female manual worker, compared to 2.4 years today. This state pension divide works out at £29,000. The equivalent gap for male manual and professional workers is £23,000, or 3.1 years.

The TUC report also shows that millions of people will receive less state pension, despite having to work for a further two years, because their life expectancy is not keeping pace with the increasing state pension age. People living in poor areas such as Corby, Manchester, Salford and Hull will receive substantially less state pension over their lifetime. A woman in her late 40s in Corby will have to work for two more years before retiring but will receive £12,000 less state pension during her retirement than those retiring in 2016.  A man of a similar age living in Manchester will receive £7,500 less during his retirement.

The lifetime state pension for men, based on a full ‘single-tier’ state pension award, will fall from £147,000 in 2016 (when the single-tier is introduced) to £146,000 in 2028. Women retiring in 2028 will have to work longer in order to receive the same state pension (£164,000) as those retiring in 2016.

The government’s failure to consider persistent inequalities in life expectancy when accelerating the rise in the state pension age, will leave millions far worse off in retirement, says the TUC.

The TUC believes that the government should reverse its decision to raise the state pension age in light of new evidence on life expectancy projections, and instead set up an independent commission to examine inequalities in life expectancy and their effect on people’s retirement incomes.

TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said: “The government’s decision to accelerate the rise in the state pension age will mean millions of people having to work for longer in order to receive less in retirement.

“There is already a shocking divide in life expectancies across England, and if current trends continue that inequality will get worse in the coming decades. The government’s pension reforms will add to the problem, with people in richer areas receiving more from the state, while those in poorer areas receive less.

“It cannot be right that people living in a wealthy area can receive tens of thousands of pounds more in state pension than someone living in a less well off part of the country, particularly as richer people are likely to have earned more during the career and have a bigger private pension too.

“The government should abandon its plan to raise the state pension age in light of the new evidence on projected life expectancies. It should instead set up an independent commission to examine health inequalities and the impact on people’s expected retirement incomes.”

Source

Related articles:

1. TUC’s pension warning over growing north-south life expectancy divide
2. Tory MP says he won’t change “unfair” pleural plaque postcode lottery
3. UCU condemns elite university postcode lottery

Firm didn’t give ‘Atos’ about man's disability

The controversial firm which tells disabled people in the UK if they are fit to work was unable to interview a Tyneside job applicant - because he was in a wheelchair

Jamie Shield, 25, from Wallsend, applied for a job at Atos in IT services, but was told he could not come to the interview as the interview would take place on the sixth floor

The controversial firm which tells disabled people in the UK if they are fit to work was unable to interview a Tyneside job applicant - because he was in a wheelchair.

Jamie Shield, 25, applied for a position with Atos - paid millions of taxpayers’ money by the Government to carry out employment tests - and was invited for an interview.

But he was told he could not be seen after all because a lift only went to the fifth floor of their Durham office - and they were on the sixth.

A “principal resource specialist” from the company added insult to injury when she wrote to Jamie to apologise - with a spelling mistake.

She told him: “Please except (sic) our apologies but we have no facilities to get a wheelchair to the sixth floor.

“The lift in the building only goes to the fifth floor and with the service desk on the sixth floor we won’t be able to accommodate you.

“Thanks for all your efforts.”

Jamie was staggered at their admission - and the double standards of a firm which promises not to discriminate ‘on the basis of race, religion, colour, sex, age, disability or sexual orientation’.

They had also promised to make ‘reasonable adjustments’ to the applications process for people with disabilities.

Jamie, an applied computing graduate, said: “I have some experience of being knocked back after writing applications where the grounds for not employing me has been hidden or covered up.

“I knew the real reason - my disability - but it was never said.

“That’s why I found it strange that this company should be so open about this.

“They are making decisions on people’s disabilities and benefits every day but cannot interview me for a job because they have no lift.

“It shows real double standards.”

The firm did not offer to carry out the interview at another site, on another floor or at ground level of their offices in Milburngate House, Durham.

Jamie, who graduated from Northumbria University, had applied for a job working on their service desk, which offers technical support to the BBC.

He is currently working in a similar role but on a short term contract, so was disappointed not to be able to at least be interviewed.

Atos has since written to Jamie.

The company told him: “Please take some time to reflect and if you did wish to pursue the offer of an interview with us, I would be delighted to organise.”

But Jamie, of Wallsend, North Tyneside, said: “I feel it would be morally wrong to work there now, unless things drastically change.”

More than four in 10 jobless people with crippling life long illnesses are told by Atos they will get better, and must seek work in Government tests, according to shock figures released by UK charities this week.

Between 2008-11, 13,600 people with serious conditions such as cystic fibrosis and Parkinson’s Disease applied for out of work benefit the Employment Support Allowance.

But according to the research, 45 per cent were told they were able to recover to the point where they could look for work.

Parkinson’s UK said the results of the Work Capability Assesments carried out by Atos ‘defied belief’.
Jamie suffers from neurofibromatosis, a genetic disorder which has left him in a wheelchair due to tumours growing on nerve tissue.

An Atos spokeswoman said: “We apologise unreservedly to Mr Shield, and will be writing to him directly with an explanation of what happened.”

Source

Atos decide man with cerebral palsy is fit for work

ANTONY WALKER had his benefits docked after French firm’s fitness-to-work tests – but experts at an appeal took just minutes to see sense and overturn the decision.

BRAVE Antony Walker has spent his whole life battling cerebral palsy. But when Atos put him through their hated fit-for-work test, he scored ZERO.

The 25-year-old Scot needed 15 points in the tick-box test to get the benefit payments he needed.

But despite his debilitating brain condition, which forces him to use crutches and makes simple tasks a painful struggle, he says the French company “for all intents and purposes considered me able-bodied”.

After the assessment, Iain Duncan Smith’s Department for Work and Pensions refused to give Antony employment and support allowance and told him to start looking for a job.

Stunned, Antony appealed. It took him eight months to get a hearing. And after hearing the evidence, an expert panel needed just 10 minutes to decide Atos were wrong.

Antony became one of tens of thousands of people to win appeals after Atos Work Capability Assessments.

The Government’s own statistics have shown that more than a third of people who challenge decisions – 37 per cent – get them overturned.

There have been more than 600,000 appeals since Work Capability Assessments began, at a cost to the taxpayer of about £60million a year.

Antony, from Greenock, wants to work. Despite his condition, he finished a university degree in Italian and marketing and has applied for dozens of jobs.

But his condition makes life a daily struggle and he was outraged at how the Atos test dismissed it.

He told the Record: “I have a lifelong condition. If anything, it’s not going to get better – it’s going to get worse.

“But the fact I could score zero meant that for all intents and purposes Atos considered me to be an able-bodied person. I was quite shocked by that.

“I just don’t think the assessments are designed to reflect how wide-ranging disability can be. It was black and white. It didn’t take grey areas into account.

“Much of the assessment was incorrect or misleading. They wrote that I could walk 500 metres, but it doesn’t mean I’m on a par with an able-bodied person.

“Yes, I can walk 500 metres. But by the time I get there, I’m exhausted and in pain.

“Atos had me down as able to lift a box, but that requires great effort for me. I can’t lift boxes all day.

“And I was assessed as being able to do my shopping in 20 minutes, when in fact I’d said it takes me 20 minutes to do my shopping online. It’s not as though I pop down to Sainsbury’s.


Daily Record

Bedroom Tax: An inspector calls: Can YOU help her assess the damage?

Reblogged from Vox Political:

Hugely unpopular: Thousands of people have demonstrated against the bedroom tax on the poor since it was first announced by our government of millionaires – this one was in Glasgow.

A United Nations inspector has arrived in the UK to investigate whether David Cameron’s Coalition government has reneged on international agreements giving everybody the right to adequate housing and shelter.

Special rapporteur Raquel Rolnik has been asked to assess whether bedroom tax-related eviction threats that are driving tenants to suicide mean the UK is refusing that right to its citizens – and you can help her with this by emailing your story to her on srhousing@ohchr.org

Come to that, there’s no reason for victims of the ESA assessment regime, for whom loss of the benefit involves a threat of eviction, not to provide their story as well. Is that you? srhousing@ohchr.org

Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights recognises the right to housing as part of the right to an adequate standard of living: “Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.”

An article announcing the visit in the Morning Star (it doesn’t seem to have been picked up by the pro-Coalition newspapers) said the visit was likely to infuriate our comedy Prime Minister, David Cameron.

The article states that he described this country, in a speech to the UN last year, as “a country that keeps its promises to the poorest”.

It seems possible he will argue that under-occupation of social housing – having a ‘spare room’ as defined by his law – means people are getting more than they deserve.

But the government’s clear failure to provide enough social housing of a size and standard appropriate for the 660,000 affected households in the UK – some of the poorest in the country – is likely to weigh against him.

And then there is the fact that the policy has driven people to death.

For example: John Walker, of Marsh Green, Bolton, was found hanged at his home by former partner Susan Martin in May. He had been worried about mounting financial problems, worsened by being forced to pay extra rent on his home under the bedroom tax. A suicide note was found in the property.

And Greater Manchester Against the Bedroom Tax’s Mark Krantz told the Morning Star of an eviction in Oldham where bailiffs discovered the tenant had also hanged himself, and was dead.

These two deaths pale into insignificance, of course, when compared with the monumental death toll caused by the Department for Work and Pensions and its assessment regime for Employment and Support Allowance. The plan, which aims to knock as many sick and disabled people off-benefit as possible – for any reason at all – has led to thousands (possibly tens of thousands) of deaths as claimants’ health conditions have overtaken their bodies’ ability to cope, or the prospect of destitution or being a financial burden on friends and family has forced them into suicide. The DWP is currently refusing to issue figures on the number of deaths that have taken place, among those either claiming or appealing, since the start of 2012 – and it is believed that this can only be because the numbers are far greater than the already-appalling 73-a-week average that was revealed for 2011. No figures are known for the 70 per cent of claimants who have been marked “fit for work” and thrown off the benefit altogether, who have not appealed against the decision. The DWP does not monitor their well-being at all.

Ms Rolnik is expected to meet with government officials, non-government organisations, housing associations and individuals in a tour of England and Scotland.

But to get a full picture of the situation here, she needs to hear from real people who have become victims of the robber-government’s punitive policies. She needs to hear from you: srhousing@ohchr.org

Becoming Disabled

Reblogged from Shadows In The Mirror:


For most of my life I have been very fortunate in the fact that I have been healthy, hardly ever requiring the need of a Doctor aside from back problems caused by a fall down a flight of concrete stairs when I was in my teens. I took my health for granted as so many of us do, stretching myself to the limits and thinking myself indestructible. I didn’t take particular care of myself, no dieting, healthy eating or regular exercise although I was a pretty active woman anyway. I worked all hours running my own busy little pub, I travelled and I loved to hike out in the countryside. These were my passions and they were the first things to go when I became sick.

I lived in Australia for a while and it was there that I first started noticing all was not quite right. Pain where before there had been none and struggling to do an all day shift at work. I struggled on for a while before coming back home to the UK and that is when the real problems started. I managed to find myself somewhere temporary to live and part time bar work to tide me over until I could find something more permanent and get my own Photography Business off the ground. However I started to struggle to keep up with everyone else, a long days shoot would put me flat on my back for two days and I was starting to have problems walking as well due to the chronic pain in my knees but still I pushed it to the back of my mind, after all I was no spring chicken, I was pushing fifty!

Then I had a bad fall, I slipped on ice and landed right on the base of my spine, at the time I didn’t think too much of it, I was sore but thought it was just bruising and would heal soon enough. But the pain didn’t go away, I couldn’t sit properly as it was excruciatingly painful and my original spine problems were made worse by the awkward posture created by having keep the weight from my coccyx. This carried on for a few months, I was too scared to go and see my Doctor in case she told me it was Cancer or something else equally as frightening, my stress levels went through the roof because each day the pain all over my body just seemed to get worse. I had to give up work and claim Disability, I didn’t have a clue about Work Capability Assessments or ESA at the time (I had been out of the country for two years don‘t forget), I thought a note from my Doctor would suffice. So the much delayed appointment for my Doctor could no longer wait and I found myself sitting in her surgery crying my eyes out and spilling out everything that I had been going through, the pain the fear and everything else that had seemed to be ‘going wrong‘ in my life. I hadn’t realised quite so much how all of this was impacting on me, how could I go from a globe trotting explorer to this pathetic woman snivelling in my Doctors office in the space of months? I couldn’t understand it and I’m sure you’ll understand if I say I was absolutely terrified.

I was in a relationship at the time and was constantly getting nagged at for not doing enough around the house, or going out and getting a full time job, even though I had tried to explain that I was in so much pain. I was made to feel as if I was making it all up and indeed on more than one occasion they even hurled that accusation at me. It got to the stage where I would sit at home in silence, trapped in my own nightmare little world I stopped going out and then got accused of being anti-social, the list is endless, I felt like I could do nothing right, accusations at every turn.

At one point I got so desperate that I got a razor blade out and started slashing at my thigh, the blood running in rivulets down my leg, if asked to explain why, even to this day I can’t give you an answer except to say it felt real and it stopped me thinking. I had so much going round in my head, I was so frightened that I had the C word or if not it was Multiple Sclerosis like my Father, my home life was diabolical, there was no love just resentment turning to hatred. My partner was also a heavy drinker, I would say alcoholic although they denied that and still do to this day as far as I know, nearly every night they would come home and the rows would begin, I just couldn‘t bear it anymore yet I was stuck there, I had no job and no money to get my own place and felt so alone and desperate. Towards the end the arguments turned to violence and that was when I snapped and decided I couldn’t take any more, I had to get out.

I was diagnosed with depression. I was also sent to three different Specialists, one for my spine, one for my legs and to the Asthma Clinic as I had also been having trouble with my breathing. I was diagnosed with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Arthritis in my knees Coccydynia and Chronic Degenerative Disc Disease. I was put on the waiting list for a partial knee replacement and injections in my coccyx and spine for the pain. At last I felt like I was getting somewhere, x-rays and MRIs proved unequivocally that I did have physical problems and that helped me emotionally to a certain extent. Feeling grateful to a Surgeon or a GP is not something we should ever have to feel yet here I was thanking mine, eyes brimming for believing me. I also managed with help to get out of the house I was living with my ex and found a place of my own so things were looking up…..or so I thought anyway. I was about to find out exactly how difficult it was to get financial help when you are disabled. I applied for Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) and was awarded minimum rate until I had an Assessment.

After a few months I was sent for my first Work Capability Assessment which I failed and I was no longer entitled to ESA. I was living in Nottingham at the time and as soon as I got the letter stating my benefits had stopped I went to the Nottingham Job Centre and attempted to get help, I say attempted because it was akin to banging your head against a brick wall, by this time I was in floods of tears and I literally begged to talk to a member of staff, anyone who could help me, I must have looked a right mess but I couldn‘t help it and cared even less. I was refused and told to ring their office. I did so, I was NOT told I could appeal but instead had to sign on for Job Seekers despite having Medical Certificates to back up my claim that I was unfit to work. So I signed on for three months and every signing day I told the Advisor that I was unfit for work but they let me sign anyway (I am assuming this was illegal although I didn‘t know that at the time either).

During this period I found from a Health Care Worker that I was entitled to appeal but not that I could still receive ESA whilst the appeal process was going through. I was still signing on despite this and they were letting me! My ESA eventually got reinstated after I looked up an advice line on the internet and then I waited ten months for my Tribunal which immediately overturned the Assessors decision. It then took them ten months after that to give me my backdated benefit and I have never received the money from the three months that they forced me, illegally in my opinion to sign on. They actually told me I wasn’t entitled because I had declared myself fit to work even though I pointed out to them that each signing on day I had refuted that fact, but, I had my money and the result I deserved so I decided to be content with that.

Six months after my first Tribunal though I was called for another Assessment which I passed with no problems, my pain levels were increasing quite dramatically and this must have shown on the day which had been a particularly bad one, naively I thought this would be the end of it, I had had two assessments and they had irrefutable proof that my conditions were deteriorating rapidly. However six months later I was called for yet another Assessment, by this time my condition had worsened to the point where I rarely left the house and actually getting to the assessment on its own was an agonizing ordeal. I was now seeing a different Spine Specialist who was discussing the possibility of major Spine Surgery and I was also still on the Hospital waiting list for the Knee Replacement Surgery of which Atos were informed and given all the paperwork, once again backing up my claim. I failed again, getting the letter informing me that my benefit had been withdrawn two days after coming out of hospital from having said surgery.

I could not believe it, I sat in the chair totally stunned, unable to take in what I was reading, how on earth can they find me fit to work six months after finding me unfit when my condition was considerably worse? I had twenty staples holding my knee together, just what was I supposed to do, I wasn’t well enough to go chasing around everywhere to try and get it all sorted out I was supposed to be recuperating from major surgery, I was devastated. I was left with no choice, I was broke and my rent was due, if I had lost my home I am sure I wouldn’t be sitting here now, I felt that desperate so I hobbled over to the Job Centre on crutches which was now thankfully just across the road from where I was living. I demanded to see an Advisor, refusing to go until I had, angrily waving the letter under the receptionists nose, I am sure I was so very close to being thrown out but I didn’t care, I wanted it sorted out and I wanted it done there and then.

They did give me an appointment and I lifted my leg up onto a chair, pulled up my trouser leg and practically screamed at her “Does this look like I am b***** fit for work?” Yes, I’m afraid I did swear, I’m not proud of it but I had already been through this scenario a year previously, I was determined I wasn’t going through the same again. I had one thing on my side this time…..Information. I had done an awful lot of research and I had also joined an online Support Group, Atos Miracles. Just feeling that I wasn’t going through it all alone helped me more than words can say. I demanded an immediate appeal and that my benefit be reinstated, the advisor looked quite astonishingly at me as I laid out everything I wanted done, including a letter for the council as my Housing Benefit would have been stopped immediately also, although luckily I now had an understanding Landlord.

The letter for the Council and the appeal form were sorted out there and then and my benefits were re-instated within the week but at the lower rate. Thanking whoever for small mercies and the fact that I live in a tiny town I hobbled out of the Job Centre and across the road to the Council Offices and also got my HB re-instated the same day. After getting a taxi home I spent the rest of the day and following night in tears because I was in so much pain from having to exert myself so much and couldn’t walk at all the next day.

It took thirteen long months for my Tribunal to be held this time, during which I suffered severe hardship and amassed considerable debts to the point at one stage of having an arrest warrant issued. I had to borrow the money from my family to stay out of prison which was humiliating in itself, I ate very little and I spent one of the coldest winters I had had for a very long time because I couldn‘t afford to put the heating on, instead sat there wrapped in blankets clutching a hot water bottle. I got so depressed I went for days not getting dressed or even opening the curtains. I cut myself off from friends and eventually even they stopped calling.

My condition kept deteriorating, some days I didn’t even have the energy to get off the sofa to cook myself something to eat or even make a cup of tea. I went back to see my Doctor after I practically lost the use of my right arm due to pain and was so low at one point I seriously wondered whether it was worth living. I was in hell and I couldn’t see a way out of it. I had no diagnosis and felt that no one believed me when I told them I was literally in pain from head to toe.

Another Specialist and once again the fear of what he was going to tell me. I was in for a surprise though, no stuffy Specialist looking down and talking at me, this guy actually listened to what I had to say and talked to me, it was like a breath of fresh air. I have never known any Doctor to be so open and honest and although I had bad news I still came out of there feeling as if he actually understood what I was trying to tell him.

I had written everything down, pages and pages of notes of everything I wanted to say to him as my memory no longer works properly, but in the end I didn‘t need them, it was probably the best conversation I have had with one person in a very long time..He diagnosed my Frozen Shoulder and prescribed a course of injections which I am pleased to say have helped tremendously.

He gave me a leaflet to read as I was leaving and told me to read it and we would discuss it next time I saw him. The leaflet? Living with Fibromyalgia, my heart missed a beat when I read that, I had considered it, of course I had, but the growing certainty inside me was a different matter entirely. Was this me? Is this my life now? As soon as I got home I read the whole booklet from cover to cover, twice over, crying as every page described exactly each day of my life and the problems even the smallest thing can incur. I could have written it myself it was that precise.

I had a week before I saw my Specialist again, seven long days where emotionally I felt like I was on the worlds largest roller coaster. One minute I felt relief, because I had a name for what was happening to me, relief would turn to anger because there are still so many unanswered questions and so to fear, is this my life now, do I have to live every day for the rest of my life forgetting what it feels like to not have any pain. It was one of the longest weeks of my life and it was with trepidation that I went to the clinic seven day later. But there it is, I have Fibromyalgia and I am still struggling to come to terms with it, I have a good support network and for that I am very thankful but it is difficult. I still have days where I don’t want to open the curtains and face the world, especially when I have officialdom to contend with also.

During all this I was still waiting for my second Tribunal and in November last year I once again successfully overturned the Atos decision. Armed with resources and fully supported this time I ensured I got my backdated benefits paid a lot sooner and was able to pay off a large quantity of my debts although not all. I thought once again that would be that and after two successful Tribunals surely they wouldn’t ask me for another assessment but ’lo and behold in May this year what should fall onto my doormat? Yes, another assessment form. Unbelievable, I know I shouldn’t have been surprised but I seriously thought they would leave me alone now. I duly filled in the form, sent off all my evidence, even going as far to tell them that I could no longer use public transport and asked for a home visit they still asked me to go for an assessment.

This time I fought back, I sent countless emails demanding to know why they hadn’t taken my form into consideration or contacted my Doctor for more evidence, I wrote to the newspapers and to my local MP, whom I still waiting for a reply from by the way. I also told Atos I was going to make a referral against the Nurse who decided despite the evidence that I was fit enough to travel to Nottingham, which I did. After a couple of months of continuous letter writing (or should I say emailing) I finally got my way and the assessment was cancelled and I have been placed in the Support Group for a year. Twelve months of peace so I can now take the time to try and come to terms with what is left of my life and attempt to forge a newer brighter future

Disabled? Only one way to make Atos ESA assessors understand your condition

Reblogged from Vox Political:

Insanity: Apologies for using this image yet again but it perfectly encapsulates the lunacy that is rampant in the Department for Work and Pensions, headed up by Iain ‘I believe’ Smith.

We’re all getting to the point now, aren’t we?

You know what point I mean; the point where we realise that we can no longer afford to believe our dealings with the Department for Work and Pensions – including any of its representatives – involve contact with rational human beings.

There is nothing rational about DWP decisions. We’ve known that all along, but now we have enough evidence to prove it.

Look at the Daily Mirror‘s story today: Almost half of the ESA claimants who are known to have progressive conditions like Parkinson’s, cystic fibrosis, multiple sclerosis or rheumatoid arthritis are being refused admission to the support group.

Instead, they’ve been put into the work-related activity group, which means they are expected to recover from these permanently-disabling ailments to a point at which they could look for work.

This is, of course, impossible.

All doctors know it is impossible.

Atos assessors are said to be doctors. Therefore they should know it is impossible.

An Atos spokesperson, quoted in the article, tried to cover the company’s arse by saying decisions are made by the DWP.

The DWP spokesperson said, “There is strong evidence working can be beneficial for many people who have a health condition.”

Like Parkinson’s?

A condition like that of the gentleman quoted in the report, who gave up working six years after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s, and who can no longer do even basic things?

Nobody can say he didn’t try to keep going for as long as he possibly could. But he was repeatedly told he would be able to recover from his progressively worsening condition and work again, and now the DWP is refusing to carry out any more assessments on him.

Closer to home, Mrs Mike – my own long-suffering significant other – first began experiencing the chronic pain that eventually stopped her from working in 2001. She soldiered on for a further two years before being signed off work by her doctor after spending a lengthening series of time on sick leave.

Her condition has worsened progressively since then, resisting all attempts at treatment. She was granted Incapacity Benefit but this was changed to ESA last year. She was put in the work-related activity group but appealed against this after being told by a work programme provider that she would not be healthy enough to work by the time her benefit ended, and that she should seek reconsideration (or appeal) with a view to being put in the support group.

She did this, but the DWP has sat on the request for almost six months without doing anything, waiting for her benefit period to end so she could be signed off and claimed as a “positive benefit outcome”. This finally happened, two weeks ago.

They say she must be fit for work now. In fact, her health is worse than ever.

Irrational.

And – as this is the prevailing attitude at the DWP – we can say that the DWP attitude as a whole is irrational.

(We know the DWP monitors this site, so: Hello, DWP snooper! Are you aware you’re quite mad?)

It’s reminiscent of the stories about amputees being asked when their limbs were likely to grow back. That, too, was irrational.

It does offer a way out, for those people under threat from these idiots and the Atos employees working for them. Not a particularly nice way, as you’ll see – but probably the only way that will work:

Anyone going to a work capability assessment takes an able-bodied friend with them. As soon as they are alone with the assessor, the able-bodied friend rips the Atos employee’s lower jaw off and destroys it. It doesn’t matter how.

(I told you it wasn’t a particularly nice way!)

For the claimant, and their friend, this course of action leads to a secure future in prison, where their bed and board will be supported by the taxpayer (albeit at considerably greater expense than if the DWP had just put them in the support group).

For the assessor, it provides insight into the plight of those he or she has been working with; sometime in their own future, they will know exactly how it feels to have one of their own colleagues asking, “How long before it grows back and you can get back to work?”

Now, I’m not suggesting for a moment that anyone should actually go out and perform such a heinous act on a (so-called) medical professional.

But I maintain that they will never accept the seriousness of your condition unless they are made to suffer it – or something similar – themselves.

Atos: Our last twelve months have been nothing but torture

From the facebook page ‘ATOS miracles’ 27th August 2013:

Stephen Critchley: 

An open letter to Mr Cameron, Mr Clegg and all Con-Dem supporters.

Our last 12 months have been nothing but torture, my wife suffers from a rare illness which is life threatening and degenerative, for those of you that doesn’t know what degenerative means. A degenerative disease is a disease in which the function or structure of the affected tissues or organs will increasingly deteriorate over time. But do not worry you are not alone Atos healthcare did not know either they told my wife that she would be better within 3 years therefore is fit enough to return to work.

We appealed this and it has taken just over 10 months to sort out. All this worry and stress has done my wife no good at all, most people have no idea what is like to live with a life threatening illness, and in an ideal world nobody would but yet my wife was forced to relive her illness again and again. We had 3 letters from different specialists and one from our GP supporting us and we even went to visit our MP which was of no help. But still Atos and the DWP would not believe us and my wife’s specialists after all what do they know, so we had to go a tribunal at the magistrate’s court which we won.

What an ordeal that was for me let alone my wife, we were both searched like criminals and of course the court room is upstairs and at the other end of the building, this is no accident they do this to try and catch you out, the reason for this is if you put on your form you cannot walk more than 40 meter’s then how did you reach the court room? If this is not true then why after the hearing were we allowed to use the lift and leave via a short cut?

My question to you all is this why did it ever get this far, surely the letters from the specialists was enough evidence to stop it going this far and wasting tax payers money, what was the cost to the tax payer for this exercise and most importantly what is the cost to my wife’s health and state of mind.

On top of all that we are also in a fight to try and keep our house, because of the so called Bedroom Tax now there is a policy that makes no sense at all, for example if my wife and I moved to private rented accommodation with 4 bedrooms at a £1000pm they would pay it as we would not be affected by the tax, but because we live in social housing we are forced to find £125pm, of which we cannot afford so we have a choice do we eat and keep warm or pay the tax .

Now in 2 years’ time we will have to go through it all again but then it will be a lot harder because not only will we be fighting for ESA we will have to fight for PIP, it’s no wonder a lot of the sick and disabled have thoughts of ending their own life my wife included. All I can say to every MP who voted this in is this; you can take the Motability car off us, you can take our house off us (Bedroom Tax) and our benefits, all my wife wants in return is for you to take her illness off her she did not ask for it neither does she want it.
Many Thanks

Mr S Critchley

Atos branded ‘farcical’ as nearly half of people with progressive diseases like Parkinson’s told they’ll RECOVER

The shock figures, from research by leading charities, are the latest blow to the credibility of employment tests

Campaign: Protesters in wheelchairs carry placards against Atos last year

More than four in 10 jobless people with crippling life-long illnesses are being told they will get better – and must seek work.

The shock figures, from research by leading charities, are the latest blow to the credibility of employment tests ordered by the Government.

Parkinson’s UK said the results of the Work Capability Assessment, done by French firm Atos, “defy belief”.

The charity accused the Government of an “unspeakable failure” to support the most vulnerable.

Between 2008 and 2011, 13,600 people with cystic fibrosis, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s or rheumatoid arthritis applied for out-of-work benefit the Employment Support Allowance.

But according to research from Parkinson’s UK, the Cystic Fibrosis Trust, the MS Society and the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society, 45% were told they were able to recover to the point where they could look for work.

The charities called for ministers to rethink the “hugely flawed” system.

Parkinson’s sufferer Jim Grimwood had to give up his job as a computer programmer after 20 years.

Jim, 58, from the North Pennines, said: “It was six years after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s that I was finally forced to give up work.

“After the first ESA assessment they said I should be able to work within three months. I was flabbergasted.

“Last year I applied for ESA again as my Parkinson’s had got worse.

“I was told I should be able to return to work in 18 months. I asked to be reassessed but the DWP refused.”
He said his condition prevented him from doing even basic things, let alone a job.

Caroline Hacker, of Parkinson’s UK, said: “This is the latest in a long line of unspeakable failures by Atos Healthcare and the Government to support those who need it most.

"To tell people who’ve had to give up work because of a debilitating progressive condition that they’ll recover is farcical and defies belief.”

The Department for Work and Pensions denied those with degenerative conditions are told they will recover.

But added: “There is strong evidence working can be beneficial for many people who have a health condition.”

Atos said: “Our staff are trained to assess chronic and progressive conditions.

"However, the advice we give DWP concentrates on how individuals are at present. Decisions are made by DWP.”

Atos admits it conducts around 17% of WCAs without face-to-face assessment.

Mirror

Council ‘forced’ to interrogate benefit claimants about spending #bedroomtax

Reblogged from Order Of Truth:

Labour and Scottish National Party-led Edinburgh Council has said it is forced to implement a policy which rejects applicants for discretionary hardship payments to help with the ‘bedroom tax’ if they spend too much on ‘luxuries’.

In an interview in Inside Housing magazine, Cammy Day, vice-convenor of the health, well-being and housing committee, told the magazine  “As a result of a policy imposed by the Conservative Party we are having to do this, otherwise our entire DHP allocation would have been spent in the first three months .

Read more… 500 more words

A powerful account about the latest Tory assault on the poor. I'm no expert on legal matters but this sounds to me like a gross breach of the Human Rights Act i.e. the right to a private life. If they get away with this without challenge will it set a precedent and mean that anyone dependent on the state for any amount of financial support is exempt from human rights? One step closer to slavery...

DWP Benefits Farce Leads To Overdose For Blind Heart Attack Victim

Reblogged from Welfare News Service:




Tuesday 30th July 2013 I took a phone-call from the DWP. Wednesday 31st July 2013 I took an overdose.

9am my phone rings: As normal I answer and a strange unrecognisable man is on the other end. He is explaining he is from the DWP and later TODAY between 10.30 and 4.30pm I will be receiving a phone-call from ATOS regarding a questionnaire. Failure to answer the phone-call or complete the questionnaire, could result in my disability benefit being stopped. He also explained he has written to me 7 days previously, but I explained I was fully blind, so unless I was able to scan the letter I would not be able to know what it said; this apparently was my fault for not having anyone read my mail.

My mind racing at this sudden change of events today meant I had to let the charity I volunteer for down. I run groups of support for them so not only did I let a charity down at the last-minute, but also the people who were relying on me to run that group. I also had an urgent doctors appointment later that afternoon to find out why I am losing feeling and sensation in my feet. The receptionist was annoyed at the last-minute cancellation and made a new appointment for 2 weeks time.

And so I waited for the phone to ring………

An hour later jumping out of my skin the phone rang. The lady on the other end explained I needed to fill out a questionnaire they will be sending me regarding my ability to work. It was explained coldly: because I pose a risk to their staff they will not be doing a home assessment. I cough up blood because of the poor state of my lungs but I also do this discreetly into tissues and not spray it over people, as was insinuated. I was made to feel like I was a walking infection but that was the least of my worries.

The forms are only available in standard print format, which is great if you can see. When I explained I was fully blind her first reaction was, “how do you have your bills then?” I calmly replied to her rude tone that I receive all my bills and correspondence in either Braille or audio format. “Oh…” was the reply. “What about family? They could fill it out for you?” Again I calmly and politely explained I do not have any family and I am isolated due to my disabilities so since being moved to a new area I have not had the chance to make friends because it isn’t easy popping out when you a) cannot walk b) cannot see. “Well in that case I will have to give you another number to ring and see if they can help you as we do not supply our forms in braille or audio”.

I rang that number and they said they did not having the facilities to help fill out questionnaires over the phone, so if I could call another department; I rang that department and was met with the same reply. The disability advisor has already explained on a previous phone-call she does not speak to people over the phone but you have to travel to see her in person. So I tried the fourth number I was given. I spoke to a lady at length who seemed helpful and understanding but unable to provide any answers into how I was meant to fill out a form I was not unable to see. The service previously offered to fill out forms over the phone had ceased due to government cutbacks, so she gave me another number to try, which was closed as they shut from 1pm so I would have to try them tomorrow. In the meantime it was also reminded to me that failure to fill out the form will mean my disability benefit would be delayed until this has been completed, but the silver lining was the number I have to ring tomorrow was not a premium number – unlike the ones I have been calling all day notching up quite hefty phone charges along the way.

That night worried sick I could not sleep. I woke at 4am crying because I felt after trying so hard to get back to work setting up my shop, I was now being targeted. Maybe I was being over sensitive, but that was how it felt and I was scared. In the end I wrote a desperate tweet to Baroness Tanni Grey Thompson for help, as I have found my MP in the past is very anti disabled & unwilling to help me - http://www.twitlonger.com/show/n_1rllkd8:

“@Tanni_GT HELP : I’m scared of what is happening. This morning (9.00am Tues 30th) I had a phone call from DWP informing me that the same day (Tues 30th) I would have a disability assessment over the phone by ATOS anytime between 10.30 and 4.30, and to make sure I am available. He then explained failure to do so would affect my disability benefits and might delay payment if I do not complete it so I had to cancel an urgent doctors appointment because I am losing sensation in my feet later that day at 2.30pm, so I would not miss it. An hour later a woman called me saying because I pose a risk to their staff (I cough up blood because of my lungs) I would have to fill out a questionnaire in the next few days and send it back to them. I explained I am fully blind and the service provided previously that helped me fill out forms has been cut due to government cutbacks. They are aware I am unable to walk so unable to go to one of their offices already. They also do not provide questionnaires in braille or audio format – just standard printed format. I do not have any family & I have become isolated due to my disabilities so no friends close by since I was moved here to be near my rehab centre. I do not have any visitors. Last social visit by friends was back in December. She said they did not have the resources to deal with my disability problems, just mild disabilities and asked me to ring another department for advice and help. I rang them. They said I had to ring another department for advice and help. I rang them – yes they gave me another number. I have now been asked to organise myself an appointment with an ATOS/DWP approved centre and to do this over the phone tomorrow. They said if that centre is not able to help me tomorrow to fill out the forms & questionnaire for my disability assessment to ring them back and they “will have a think on what to do”

Surely if a government department is doing disability assessments they should have the resources to deal with disabilities, and also not put the onus on me to chase around different government departments finding out who does? If I fail my assessment due to being unable to complete it does that mean I am left with nothing? I was made to feel subhuman today being told coldly I pose a risk like I am some disgusting infection because my lungs do not work properly who does not fit into their resources of disabilities. I have to go through the whole process again tomorrow. It is currently 4am and I am crying my eyes out from stress/scared and wondering why I am having to justify why I am working so hard at staying alive to them because they made me feel it was an inconvenience.”

The next morning I was told the assessment centre would be open between 8am and 1pm, and was ATOS approved. I rang nearly every 10 minutes and no-one answered at all during those 5 hours. It just rang and rang. The same time I received amazing support from Tanni & others via twitter. The phone-calls from @bendygirl led me to support from her contacts and my doctor, who had heard about my tweets, telephoned me telling me she would help fill out my forms for me. I rang the DWP lady back informing her my doctor would help with the forms to which she replied, “well it sorted itself out then” – but not before it made me ill!

By now I was experiencing chest pain and having had my second heart attack not long ago this worried me. I took my GTN spray but also my pain meds as my lungs were now in bad shape and my body in general. I was also not paying attention and an hour later I took another set of pain meds. I am not on normal paracetamol, but serious heavy-duty pain meds that allow me to function to some degree throughout the day. It allows me to do some work for my shop while I am on a scheme called “permitted to work” – which I only just started as I was unaware it existed – and allows me a lifeline to build up enough customers and income to come completely off benefits. I am not creating enough orders at the moment to do so.

That night I had to have my stomach pumped and drink a thick charcoal “milkshake”. I also was admitted due to my ECG showing worrying signs from the chest pains that were triggered off by stress.

I am home now, recovering but staying offline for a couple of days until I am stronger. My computer is fixed and I am being targeted by trolls online – throwing abuse my way for being a ‘benefit scrounger’. Yet if that is true why am I working so hard to getting my shop off the ground despite all my disabilities?

This episode has also raised a number of other more serious questions. Not everyone is lucky enough to have a great relationship with their doctors or housing officer like I do – or able to use the internet – so I worry about other blind people who will find themselves in the same situation as I found myself. A lot of blind people become isolated through sight loss especially now with so many resources having been cut back.

What would happen to them? DWP & ATOS rely solely on assuming a disabled person has family to do the work for them. When, like in my case, there is no family it feels you’re dealing with a system that has no adaptability to help, or any willingness. A lot of blind people do not have the skill to use a computer or the internet but instead lead solitary lives. Would they just have their benefits cut because they cannot see to fill out a printed form that does not come in other formats? I guess because they do not use the internet we would never hear about it?

The past 2 days I felt humiliated and ashamed of being disabled. I was made to feel I was an inconvenience because I needed help to fill out a benefits form. I cough up blood from my lungs but I do not spray people with it as insinuated by one of their staff saying I was a risk. There was no compassion in their voices, just annoyance.

Thank you to @Tanni_GT and @bendygirl. I don’t think this is the end of my problem as I know more forms will be coming their way over the course of time, but I now have people who are willing to help me in the future. I just hope next time I do not end up in hospital because of it. Despite everything I am doing to try and come off benefits and despite what Iain Duncan Smith says, not all of us on benefits are scroungers. We just need a chance and to be treated as a human being.

Do Job Centre Staff Now Need Training In Resuscitation And Should All Job Centres Have Defibrillators?

Reblogged from Grannie's Last Mix:





 There have recently been a number of reports in local newspapers up and down the country of sick or disabled people being taken ill while attending Job Centres. Given the fact that the Work Capability Assessment is seriously flawed and some very seriously  and even terminally ill people are being passed as ‘fit for work’ and being forced to attend Job Centres under threat of losing benefits, this is a budding trend that could potentially become an every day occurrence.



Job Centre staff have already been given training in dealing with suicidal claimants, a tacit admission by the DWP that its policies are having a devastating effect on many people’s mental health. Is it now time for staff in Job Centres to be trained in basic life support and resuscitation techniques and for all Job Centres to be equipped with defibrillators, to deal with the growing likelihood that very sick claimants could need urgent medical attention whilst under their roof?



If you think this sounds ludicrous consider the following news reports. For instance back in March of this year an ambulance was called to a Job Centre in Grays, Hertfordshire    when a man collapsed. By the time the paramedics arrived, despite attempts to resuscitate him, the man had died. Had the staff been properly trained in basic CPR its possible his life could have been saved.

In July this year an ambulance was called to a Scunthorpe Job Centre when a man complained of chest pains. He was later diagnosed as having had a panic attack which when severe enough can give rise to chest pain, pallor and a feeling of shortness of breath – symptoms very like those of a heart attack and just as unpleasant. Had staff been trained in First Aid techniques,whilst they may not have been able to accurately diagnose his problem they would at least have felt more confident in supporting him and calming him down until the paramedics arrived.

Read more...

Jobcentre: ‘Cruel and degrading’ – verdict on treatment received by Crohn’s sufferer

Jobsworths at a Norwich job centre have been slammed over their ‘cruel and degrading’ treatment of an ill woman who was refused use of the toilet.

Nicola Martin, 32, who has Crohn’s disease, carries a ‘Can’t Wait’ card because the condition means she might need to “use the toilet facilities urgently”.

Despite this, staff at the Kiln House Jobcentre in Pottergate told the mother-of-two she could not use their toilet because it was ‘against job centre policy’.

Mrs Martin’s case has now been taken up by South Norfolk MP Richard Bacon, who has written a letter of complaint to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, who is responsible for job centres, for an explanation.

Bosses at the job centre have apologised for their actions.

Mr Bacon said: “I am appalled by the cruel and degrading treatment my constituent had to endure. Mrs Martin was left feeling humiliated and in pain because job centre staff either wouldn’t or couldn’t understand her needs.

“I am sure there are many compassionate job centre staff across Britain who do their utmost to help Crohn’s sufferers to preserve their dignity.

“However, I understand that Mrs Martin’s experience is far from unique and that many Crohn’s sufferers struggle to have their needs taken seriously by their local job centre.

“I have asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Iain Duncan Smith, to look in detail at this matter and issue further guidance to his department as to how it treats Crohn’s sufferers and other people who may need assistance while attending their local job centre.”

Mrs Martin, from Bayspole Road, Long Stratton, was diagnosed with Crohn’s a year ago and is unable to work because of her condition.

She attended the job centre on August 6 for an interview with a specialist advisor related to her allowances.

Two members of staff at the reception told her it was against policy to let customers use the toilets.

After her appointment, she complained to the floor manager, who told her that, while she had a valid point, she still could not use the toilet.

She said the incident caused her humiliation and upset, leaving her in considerable pain and in fear of soiling herself in a public place. The stress of the incident also caused her symptoms to flare up after she left, worsening her condition.

She said: “What I’m most disappointed about is that they knew my medical condition beforehand, because I had included it on the form.

“Surely, I’m not the only one who has had this problem at the job centre? It’s a government building and there should be toilets that customers can use.”

She has been given a letter of support from the Crohn’s charity to take with her to the job centre in future.

The letter says: “I hope you will give serious consideration to raising awareness amongst your staff of this embarrassing and debilitating condition. A little help and understanding on their part could make all the difference.”

Source

Atos: Struggling through the bi-weekly gauntlet of humiliation

from the Facebook page “bedroom tax…think its unfair…join the fight here, 22nd August 2013:

“So, about a year ago, my father was denied incapacity benefit, based on an assessment by our friends at Atos.

My father scored 0 points. 

As I am sure you are aware, you require 15 points to be declared unfit for work. 

My father managed to take this decision to tribunal, and this week, we discovered that he has been awarded 24 points by the tribunal. 

My father has been struggling through the bi-weekly gauntlet of humiliation, that is jobseekers allowance for a year, trying to find work, that is not there, and which he would not be able to hold down, for one whole year because of the inherent conflict of interests involved in a private company being employed to assess the fitness of claiments on social security, while being paid for reducing the number of claimant(s).”

Disability Activists - Lions 'Led' by Donkeys

Reblogged from Pride's Purge:

(not satire – it’s the sad state of the UK today)

I never usually reveal my personal situation in blog posts. I prefer to stay anonymous – not for legal reasons but I find it prevents criticisms becoming too personal. However, I’m going to make an exception in this case because I know this blog post is going to attract some criticism from people I usually like to regard as allies.

There’s probably only one thing worse than being disabled or sick. And that’s having a child who is disabled or sick.

And I have two.

That’s why it really bothers me to see the appalling way the sick and the disabled are being treated in this country today.

Of course we all know that politicians and tabloid journalists and even comedians like to scapegoat people – and it seems to be the turn of the sick and the disabled at the moment to bear the brunt of their prejudice.

But the worst thing for me is how so many sick and disabled people are being sold out by the very people we should normally expect to be on their side – the public figures, the charities, the spokespeople – the so-called ‘leaders’.

I see leaders of charities like Scope, Mind and The Papworth Trust – along with countless others – actually justifying using disabled and sick people on mandatory workfare placements while at the same time paying themselves huge 6-figure salaries and telling us how the privatisation of the NHS will create fantastic business opportunities for the ‘charitable sector’.

I see disabled MPs – the very people who should be speaking out in support of the disabled and the sick – standing up in parliament labelling disability campaigners as ‘extremists’.

I see well-liked disability bloggers telling their followers not to share damaging information about how this same MP had claimed over 10 grand in expenses for things like soap, coasters and biscuits.

This was because it turned out there was a meeting with the MP arranged by disability ‘leaders’ in the House of Commons designed to ‘bring him onside’ as a future ally (an attempt which by the way failed – he’s a Tory FFS)

I see barely any mainstream journalist willing to tell the truth about the government’s attacks on the disabled and the sick apart from one extremely dodgy one who occasionally works as the token lefty for the Express (FFS) and the Mail (FFS) and David Icke (FFS).

Because I can tell you now, of all the many, many problems facing the sick and the disabled in this country at the moment, 6-foot lizards isn’t one of them.

Where are all the real journalists, charities, spokespeople, leaders prepared to speak up for the disabled and the sick?

The bitter truth is, I see very few so-called leaders who are really interested in the true welfare of the disabled and the sick. Most have their own agendas – usually furthering their own careers in politics, charities or journalism.

But then I look around and I see there is real help for sick and disabled people. I see local groups, self-help groups on social media like Facebook, a whole network of mostly small self-run groups offering real practical advice and help and support for disabled and sick people who are desperate to survive a worsening onslaught of attacks against them.

I’m talking about groups on Facebook like ESA/DLA, AFTER ATOS, ATOS MIRACLES, DISABILITY DEFENCE, FIGHTBACK, BENEFITS & WORK etc and all the countless local groups that share practical advice for people who need help.

It’s truly a case of lions led by donkeys.

In a future post I would like to compile a list of self-help groups which are valuable sources of help for the disabled and the sick – so if you have any suggestions, please leave them in the comment section. Thanks.

#Slave #Britain: Over 4 million workers under stress because they can’t make ends meet

Reblogged from Order Of Truth:

A study completed by the Post Office shows that over 4 million workers can not make their income last to the end of each month, affecting their health and causing stress and sleepless nights.

They are on a financial tightrope, relying on credit cards, overdrafts, and savings to survive until the next pay day, creating a vicious circle of debt. For many, getting paid brings their bank balance back to zero as they face yet another month of trying to juggle their finances and getting deeper into the red.

John Wilcock, head of financial services at the Post Office, told the Daily Mail ‘It is a concern that we are becoming “Pay Day Britain”, just counting down to the next pay cheque. ‘However, the bigger worry is that so many workers are struggling to balance their income versus their outgoings every month.’

With constantly rising costs in household bills, pay freezes, and the lowest annual rate of pay increase since records began in 1948, many are facing very, very tough times. According to the Office of National Statistics, the average annual increase in pay is at an all-time low, at just 1.3%.

With the average rate of inflation at 2.8%, workers are finding harder and harder to keep up with the rising costs of basics, such as energy and fuel.

Government changes to VAT and benefits such as child benefit and tax credits add to the misery of lower paid workers.

The move into deeper economic slavery is set to continue as the cost of living is set to rise sharply as the government fails to reduce inflation, which is running at 2% above its target.