Mark Wood who was declared fit to work weighed just five stone when police found his body
Disabled Mark Wood starved to death four months after his benefits were cut, an inquest heard.
The “frail and vulnerable” 44-year-old weighed just 5st 8lbs when he was found.
He had been declared fit to work by Atos, leaving him struggling to survive on just £40 a week, despite numerous health problems.
Mark died at his home in Bampton – part of David Cameron’s Oxfordshire constituency – in August last year.
He had Asperger syndrome and obsessive compulsive disorder, in addition to cognitive behavioural problems, including a phobia of certain foods.
His GP Nicolas Ward told Oxford coroners court yesterday: “He was an extremely fragile individual who was coping with life.
"Something pushed him or affected him in the time before he died and the only thing I can put my finger on is the pressure he felt when his benefits were removed.”
Dr Ward added that he had not been contacted by Atos – the French-based firm that carries out benefit assessments – or the Department for Work and Pensions about his patient’s medical history.
He told the court that, had he been asked, he would have ruled him unfit for work.
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