Demonisation of UK's Sick & Disabled

[Portrait]

Dear beloved friends,

Cordial greetings and a very good day.

Many good people within the UK are becoming increasingly disturbed by the Coalition Governments unrelenting and shameful attack on the countries sick and disabled, some of the most vulnerable members of society. There is a clear demonisation of the sick and disabled, who are routinely branded ‘scroungers’ by the media, which is driven by skewed statisitics issued by the DWP (the UK Government department responsible for Welfare payments). There is a tendency by the some newspapers, such as the Daily Mail, to grossly exaggerate the incidence of benefit fraud by highlighting extreme and rare cases of abuse that no man would defend.

Currently, dear friends, multitudes of sick and disabled people (including those suffering with a severe mental illness) are being ‘processed’ by the unreliable and costly ‘Work Capability Assessment’, administered by a French own IT company called ATOS, which has a lucrative contract with the UK government to undertake these flawed assessments. Many vulnerable persons are deplorably and wrongly being deemed able and capable and thus are expected to actively seek employment, notwithstanding that they are not well-enough to do so. The actual evaluation process is flawed because it relies on a computer-based tick system that simply cannot begin to address the numerous health issues with which some people are afflicted. For example, most sick and disabled people have a series of illnesses that accompany the prominent one. Moreover, there is very little scope to discuss complex mental health problems and this can convey the impression to the DWP ‘decision maker’ that a person is not that unwell and could return to work in the not too distant future. Even medical reports from family doctors and professional consultants are being ignored and now appear to carry very little weight, except as ‘supportive evidence’.

Many are of the opinion, myself included, that the most vulnerable and disadvantaged members of society are being punished and demonised by the UK government to win the approval of the chattering middle classes. Of course, dear friends, work is good for us and a positive reinforcement in giving a sense of self-worth and purpose - provided that one is not precluded from working as a consequence of a severe physical disability or mental heallth problem. Needless to say, there will always be a small number of dishonest and feckless individuals who will swing the lead and abuse the welfare system and it is right that they are weeded out and severely dealt with. However, the fact is that not everyone can hold down a job, especially those afflicted with a chronic mental impairment, such as for example acute Social Anxiety Disorder. Alas, some poor souls are so unwell or damaged by past experiences that they simply cannot cope with the world of work and forcing them to do so would only exacerbate their emotional disturbance and cause unecessary distress. Can a modern civilised country treat its sick and disabled in this despicable fashion, surely not?

Alas, there is, dear friends, much irresponsible talk by the politicians and others that sick people are better off working even if it is a difficult and stressful process for them, or silly talk about abandoning people to a life on welfare benefits. This is mostly political rhetoric, spoken to satisfy the ‘over-burdened taxpayer’ and win the middle-class vote. Am I alone in thinking that since the present UK Government came into office there has been a hardening of attitudes towards the sick and disabled on an unprecedented scale? Defending the rights of the sick and disabled in today’s Britain is likely to elicit a hostile response and one is likely to be dubbed ‘a bleeding heart liberal’ or ‘socialist’ - even if one is not! How very sad. Nevertheless, there is a grave injustice being perpetrated within the UK against the sick and disabled and it is incumbent upon Catholics to denounce it in the strongest terms as a violation of human rights and a cruel denial of disability and chronic illness, mental and physical. The sooner the UK redesigns its entire approach towards the sick and disabled so much the better. A jolly good place to start would be to get rid of the unfit for purpose ATOS and their flawed assessment tests, aimed at declaring people fit for work no matter how unwell they are so that ATOS will continue to have substantial contracts with the UK Government in the coming years.

Whilst I freely admit, dear friends, that a new system for ascertaining the welfare needs of the sick and disabled is required, I, like many others, wholeheartedly disagree with the way Mr. Cameron’s Coalition Government is going about it. His draconian and punishing austerity measures towards some of the most vulnerable, needy and desperate members of society is a national disgrace and makes me feel deeply ashamed to be British.

God bless and thankyou kindly for your time.

Warmest good wishes,

Portrait

Pax:tiphat:

 

[ora_pro_nobis]

Thank you for posting this, Portrait.

I have complex mental and physical problems and am living in fear of the way things are going. I believe the government do not care about the sick and disabled and are just concerned with demonising us, to play to the prejudices of the media and their own party supporters.

There has been an increase in reported cases of disabled people being abused and attacked in the streets. There is a lot of misinformation given in the press about disabled people - that we all get “free cars”, get all our bills paid, etc.

ATOS, the company handling the assessments, employ staff who are not qualified to make proper assessments. They say they are health care professionals, but I know for a fact that they are employing people who have no medical training at all (my sister was offered a job as an assessor). the assessment is a box ticking exercise, no account is taken of what your own doctor says.

 

[LostSheepUK]

Dear beloved friends,

Cordial greetings and a very good day.

Many good people within the UK are becoming increasingly disturbed by the Coalition Governments unrelenting and shameful attack on the countries sick and disabled, some of the most vulnerable members of society. There is a clear demonisation of the sick and disabled, who are routinely branded ‘scroungers’ by the media, which is driven by skewed statisitics issued by the DWP (the UK Government department responsible for Welfare payments). There is a tendency by the some newspapers, such as the Daily Mail, to grossly exaggerate the incidence of benefit fraud by highlighting extreme and rare cases of abuse that no man would defend.

Currently, dear friends, multitudes of sick and disabled people (including those suffering with a severe mental illness) are being ‘processed’ by the unreliable and costly ‘Work Capability Assessment’, administered by a French own IT company called ATOS, which has a lucrative contract with the UK government to undertake these flawed assessments. Many vulnerable persons are deplorably and wrongly being deemed able and capable and thus are expected to actively seek employment, notwithstanding that they are not well-enough to do so. The actual evaluation process is flawed because it relies on a computer-based tick system that simply cannot begin to address the numerous health issues with which some people are afflicted. For example, most sick and disabled people have a series of illnesses that accompany the prominent one. Moreover, there is very little scope to discuss complex mental health problems and this can convey the impression to the DWP ‘decision maker’ that a person is not that unwell and could return to work in the not too distant future. Even medical reports from family doctors and professional consultants are being ignored and now appear to carry very little weight, except as ‘supportive evidence’.

Many are of the opinion, myself included, that the most vulnerable and disadvantaged members of society are being punished and demonised by the UK government to win the approval of the chattering middle classes. Of course, dear friends, work is good for us and a positive reinforcement in giving a sense of self-worth and purpose - provided that one is not precluded from working as a consequence of a severe physical disability or mental heallth problem. Needless to say, there will always be a small number of dishonest and feckless individuals who will swing the lead and abuse the welfare system and it is right that they are weeded out and severely dealt with. However, the fact is that not everyone can hold down a job, especially those afflicted with a chronic mental impairment, such as for example acute Social Anxiety Disorder. Alas, some poor souls are so unwell or damaged by past experiences that they simply cannot cope with the world of work and forcing them to do so would only exacerbate their emotional disturbance and cause unecessary distress. Can a modern civilised country treat its sick and disabled in this despicable fashion, surely not?

Alas, there is, dear friends, much irresponsible talk by the politicians and others that sick people are better off working even if it is a difficult and stressful process for them, or silly talk about abandoning people to a life on welfare benefits. This is mostly political rhetoric, spoken to satisfy the ‘over-burdened taxpayer’ and win the middle-class vote. Am I alone in thinking that since the present UK Government came into office there has been a hardening of attitudes towards the sick and disabled on an unprecedented scale? Defending the rights of the sick and disabled in today’s Britain is likely to elicit a hostile response and one is likely to be dubbed ‘a bleeding heart liberal’ or ‘socialist’ - even if one is not! How very sad. Nevertheless, there is a grave injustice being perpetrated within the UK against the sick and disabled and it is incumbent upon Catholics to denounce it in the strongest terms as a violation of human rights and a cruel denial of disability and chronic illness, mental and physical. The sooner the UK redesigns its entire approach towards the sick and disabled so much the better. A jolly good place to start would be to get rid of the unfit for purpose ATOS and their flawed assessment tests, aimed at declaring people fit for work no matter how unwell they are so that ATOS will continue to have substantial contracts with the UK Government in the coming years.

Whilst I freely admit, dear friends, that a new system for ascertaining the welfare needs of the sick and disabled is required, I, like many others, wholeheartedly disagree with the way Mr. Cameron’s Coalition Government is going about it. His draconian and punishing austerity measures towards some of the most vulnerable, needy and desperate members of society is a national disgrace and makes me feel deeply ashamed to be British.

God bless and thankyou kindly for your time.

Warmest good wishes,

Portrait

Pax:tiphat:

Portrait,

You have eloquently and objectively outlined the persecution we disabled people are suffering under the current Government.

ATOS are an evil organisation and it was crass and wholly inappropriate that the Govt allowed them to be one of the main sponsors of the Paralympics when they have done so much damage to the sick and vulnerable.

I am horrified by some of the stories that appear every day about how the needy are being squeezed, marginalised and down trodden in order to pay for the mistakes of the wealthy, the errors of those who don’t have to worry about cuts in their welfare payments.

I am a bit of a one man crusade on this subject and I was heartened to read your post. Thank you, God bless you.

 

[SilverCamellia]

I succeeded in being awarded ESA (sickness benefit) in April 2012 for my depression. My depression is now, thankfully, a lot better and I expect that in April, after my ESA is reviewed, that I will be moved on to JSA (unemployment benefit).

While it is unfortunately totally true that the sick and disabled are being demonised, so are the recipients of JSA. On newspaper comments, a lot of people ignore that a single unemployed person receives £77 a week, and a couple living together £110. Instead they point to what must be a minority of cases who receive benefits totalling £20,000 a year, who apparently also have 50" flat screen TVs and go on holiday to Spain . Unemployed people are labelled workshy scroungers by many of the tabloids, and even by the Government.

I believe the government encourages the low-paid working class to think this way because they themselves are paid so little that in some cases living on benefits makes one better off than a worker. The Government promises to make this impossible in the future. Not by raising the minimum wage - but by cutting unemployment benefits. The minimum wage pays so little against the cost of living that the Government has to top up the amount by ‘working tax credits’ so people can afford to live.

Except for those few families who see living on benefits as a normal way of life, I think many recipients of sickness and unemployment benefit are worried about the future, as am I. The Government has set up a website for jobseekers who are being forced to use it despite security risks. They can then track if the seeker is actually searching for jobs he is likely to get, and he has to make a certain amount of job applications per week. If he doesn’t - his benefits are sanctioned.

I am also worried about the Work Programme - where the unemployed are MADE to go and work for a company - otherwise their benefits are stopped for a couple of weeks or so - while still receiving only £77 a week and having to pay travel costs from that as well as living costs. For myself, I have a dog and a cat and I don’t want to leave my dog alone while I have to go and sit on a bus for a couple of hours and then ‘work’ for 8 hours. The Work Programme is supposed to lead to job offers but it rarely does.

Despite the deliberate targeting of benefit recipients, I read on a website recently that only 4% of the welfare bill is spent on benefits - 70% is spent on pensions.

 

[Ysara]

I want to thank you for both posts… I am sitting here crying… I am in that category you were speaking of… I have severe depression… anxiety and panic attacks… I also have diabetes… kidney disease … and I am only partially mobile… I get tired very easiy… and am subject to dizzy spells and impaired walking… I have other medical problems … Im high risk for stroke… Heck this is sounding bad… But worse than all the physical problems is the depression … it borders on despair at times and I have been close to suicide… I have never put any of this down before… I am on ESA at the moment and that is all I have to live on… I sound like a crier and please believe me I am not… I will have to shortly give up the net and that will hit me hard as it is one of the few ways I have of keeping in contact with my sister… and others… I can’t affoed it any more … I know this is coming and I will have to face it… and with the Grace of God … I will… I am a fighter and always have been… but sometimes it gets so hard to just exist… If it wasn’t for my Faith I would have no hope at all… The maths do not add up… Rent… net… oil… and electric… I would love to see a gov minister try to live on this… and I speak for many people … I was made to feel like a criminal during a medial assessment… it was horrible… It was a middle aged woman Doctor and she kept me in for over an hour and a half… I came out shaking and crying… I felt like I was begging and a scrounger… My one hope is that the Lord will accept my suffering for souls… Whcih is one reason why I never talk about this… but your post touched me deeply and I felt compassion in your tone… I have been through hell in the past 5 years… All I want is my life back and the chance to get back to who I was… but the chances of that are virtually non existant… who would employ someone like me??? Employers would say I was unfit… Sorry for the rant… I have never spoke like this before … but I saw this post and can identify with everything in it… Thank-you for posting this… I will keep you all in my prayers

 

[Portrait]

Thank you for posting this, Portrait.

I have complex mental and physical problems and am living in fear of the way things are going. I believe the government do not care about the sick and disabled and are just concerned with demonising us, to play to the prejudices of the media and their own party supporters.

There has been an increase in reported cases of disabled people being abused and attacked in the streets. There is a lot of misinformation given in the press about disabled people - that we all get “free cars”, get all our bills paid, etc.

ATOS, the company handling the assessments, employ staff who are not qualified to make proper assessments. They say they are health care professionals, but I know for a fact that they are employing people who have no medical training at all (my sister was offered a job as an assessor). the assessment is a box ticking exercise, no account is taken of what your own doctor says.

Dear ora_pro_nobis,

Cordial greetings and a very good day. Thankyou so very much for your heartfelt response and I fully understand the fears that you have respecting the future of the sick and disabled in the UK.

You are quite correct, dear friend, there is much disinformation floating about because of baloney written by irresponsible and fanatical ultra-right wing social commentators. Thus the incidence of aggression and hostility towards the sick and disabled is hardly surprising and they are more in fear for their safety than at any other time in recent history. It is my firm conviction that there is a direct correlation between the resentment whipped up about ‘spongers’ and the physical assaults taking place in our midst. This ought to sicken us and it is deeply saddening that so many of the working British public have fallen hook, line and sinker for the lies of politicians and the smug middle-class social commentators.

Sickness and disability can happen at any time to any of us, dear friend, and the urgent need of the hour is for more compassion in this country of ours, not less. Those shameful ATOS tests (Work Capability Assessment) are unacceptable for a civilised Western country. Moreover, they are a complete failure, as the vast amount of money spent on appeals evinces most clearly, quite aside from the human misery it costs. More than 176,000 cases go to appeal each year, costing the British tax-payer some £50 million. In view of this, perhaps taxpayers should redirect their wrath against the Coalition Government who gave ATOS the lucrative contract to undertake WCA tests, rather than the sick and disabled. Contrary to denials by Government and ATOS respecting targets, they undoubtedly are a significant factor, for ATOS will only be awarded the contract if they deliver favourably for the Government and that necessarily means declaring people fit for work. Thus they lack objectivity and are nothing more than just a private company out to make profit and to do this they must secure substatial contracts (ATOS enjoys a 3 billion pounds deal with the British Government - quite an incentive to deliver the goods!).

Indeed, dear friend, those who undertake the Work Capability Assessment tests are supposed to be health care professionals of some sort (in my own case my analyst was described as a ‘Registered Medical Practioner’), however, the whole nature of the tests and the inflexible ‘descriptors’ used means that in reality they are reduced to being little more than analysts who simply (name removed by moderator)ut information. Now any man can see that when you are dealing with people’s illnesses (which in the case of mental health can often be quite complex) these tests are woefully inadequate and not fit for purpose. For example, vulnerable people suffering from mental health issues, such Social Anxiety Disorder etc. could easily fail the test and be declared able and capable. Moreover, the client simply does not have the time to elaborate upon their illness and how it affects them, or they may simply clam up completely because they are plainly scared to death by the cold and clinical ATOS analyst who insensitively (name removed by moderator)uts data into a computer. Is this a humane way to treat sick and disabled people who have done nothing wrong but who, nevertheless, feel that they are on trial? Of course they have to assessed as regards their entitlements to welfare benefits and no one is saying otherwise. However, these undignified and demeaning tests are surely not the way to go about it in a civilised country of the Western world.

God bless, my dear friend, and may His peace be with you in all of your afflictions and anxieties. You will be in my prayers later this evening. Thankyou kindly for your response.

Warmest good wishes,

Portrait

Pax

 

[ora_pro_nobis]

Dear Portrait, Lost Sheep, Ysara, Silver Camelia,

thank you for your posts. I some times feel utterly alone and it is good to know there are others who understand the anxiety I feel. You are all in my prayers.

 

[Ridgerunner]

This is not surprising to me at all, but not for the reasons stated.

In the U.S., Obama and his people are embarking on a healthcare “experiment”. I say “experiment” because they really don’t know what the results are going to be in any real detail. Estimates of the cost, number of people benefitted, etc are all over the place.

But regardless of that, the purpose of Obamacare was to win votes among the middle class. And by “middle class” in the U.S., I don’t mean “middle class” as in Brit lit. “Middle class” in the U.S. is understood to be anyone from a skilled worker who can afford some of the “extras” in life up to a minor-league millionaire who still has to watch his resources carefully.

And so, in obamacare, the poorest and neediest were treated very shabbily. 17 million people were added to the rolls of Medicaid; the resource for the most needy. Those are people who largely had employer-paid insurance previously. Half a trillion dollars is being cut from Medicare, the care for the elderly.

Why was that done? Because the “middle class” has the votes, that’s why. The truly needy aren’t all that many here, nor, I suspect, in Britain.

You’re probably not really looking at a government toadying to the “right wing” at all. You’re probably just looking at vote-buying by a government like ours that couldn’t possibly care less about the neediest of all.

But the “right wing” is a convenient scapegoat for uncaring politicians of all sorts. I’ll grant you that.

 

[Portrait]

Portrait,

You have eloquently and objectively outlined the persecution we disabled people are suffering under the current Government.

ATOS are an evil organisation and it was crass and wholly inappropriate that the Govt allowed them to be one of the main sponsors of the Paralympics when they have done so much damage to the sick and vulnerable.

I am horrified by some of the stories that appear every day about how the needy are being squeezed, marginalised and down trodden in order to pay for the mistakes of the wealthy, the errors of those who don’t have to worry about cuts in their welfare payments.

I am a bit of a one man crusade on this subject and I was heartened to read your post. Thank you, God bless you.

Dear LostSheepUK,

Cordial greetings and a very good day. Thankyou for the above response - my sentiments entirely.

As you are aware, dear friend, last year, notwithstanding widespread revulsion and opposition Mr. Cameron’s Coalition forced through some of the most punishing and harsh measures, via the Welfare Reform Bill, that disabled people have experienced in my lifetime. Sadly, the poor and sick are being used as scapegoats for the reckless spending of the rich and powerful and that is downright wickedness of the first rank as well as a grave injustice.

Yes, dear friend, you are quite right when you state that it was “wholly inappropriate” to allow ATOS to be sponsors of the Paralympics. The Government knows fully-well that ATOS adminsisters the controversial Work Capability Assessment and that it is considered the enemy of thousands of sick and disabled people and their carers. Allowing them to be sponsors was an affront to the sick and disabled of the UK.

Some observers, dear friend, who have failed to see the bigger picture have asked why we blame ATOS when it is DWP who is responsible for the misery caused to disabled people? It is said that the DWP pay to retain the services of ATOS and so surely it is the DWP who ought to be on the receiving end of public opprobrium. Quite frankly, I think that this misses the point, for it is not the DWP who are conducting the tests to ascertain whether someone is able and capable for work or not, it is ATOS and no one has coerced them into doing it and rake in billions in so doing. The plain truth is that they have no moral conscience and are only interested in yeilding financial gain, which is why, of course, they lack the objectivity necessary to undertake assessments on the sick and disabled of this country.

Finally, dear friend, It is fashionable to speak of the spiralling cost of disability fraud to the taxpayer and yet the truth is that disability-related fraud is estimated at 0.5% and a cost of 60 million only. We pay that to ATOS in overturned appeals alone, to say nothing of the 100 million to carry out the flawed assessments in the first place. How is this saving money, especially in these times of austerity? Surely, dear friend, this is all about corporate gain and a few soundbytes for the Government. Something is seriously amiss and the public should be angry with the Coalition Government and the disastrous ATOS contract, not the poor sick and disabled.

Finally, many people are unaware that ATOS is linked with UNUM, a US health giant that is renowned for being a disability denier. Perhaps, some of our US brethren might know something of this iniquitous company and its denial of disability.

God bless, dear friend, and thankyou so much for your (name removed by moderator)ut - keep up the crusade.

Warmest good wishes,

Portrait

Pax

 

[DexUK]

I find it astonishing that people who disagree with political policies make sweeping statements that the politicians involved are venal and evil.

I can truthfully say that having met many politicians, I have never found a single one who didn’t have an honest intention to do good with the policies they espoused.

Yes, they have differing ideas about what priorities to give to various policies, and what is best for people, but no politician venally chooses to pick on the weakest out of spite or malice of forethought. Agree or disagree with their policies, that is your right… but please refrain from describing them as evil or, indeed, the people in the companies contracted by the government (such as Atos, again, a company I have had dealings with and whom I know to be populated not by ogres and monsters but real people doing their jobs to the best of their abilities).

They are all just trying to find the best path that they can. Maybe they’re mistaken, but it is entirely unjust to judge them in the way that has been demonstrated on this thread.

 

[Portrait]

I succeeded in being awarded ESA (sickness benefit) in April 2012 for my depression. My depression is now, thankfully, a lot better and I expect that in April, after my ESA is reviewed, that I will be moved on to JSA (unemployment benefit).

While it is unfortunately totally true that the sick and disabled are being demonised, so are the recipients of JSA. On newspaper comments, a lot of people ignore that a single unemployed person receives £77 a week, and a couple living together £110. Instead they point to what must be a minority of cases who receive benefits totalling £20,000 a year, who apparently also have 50" flat screen TVs and go on holiday to Spain . Unemployed people are labelled workshy scroungers by many of the tabloids, and even by the Government.

I believe the government encourages the low-paid working class to think this way because they themselves are paid so little that in some cases living on benefits makes one better off than a worker. The Government promises to make this impossible in the future. Not by raising the minimum wage - but by cutting unemployment benefits. The minimum wage pays so little against the cost of living that the Government has to top up the amount by ‘working tax credits’ so people can afford to live.

Except for those few families who see living on benefits as a normal way of life, I think many recipients of sickness and unemployment benefit are worried about the future, as am I. The Government has set up a website for jobseekers who are being forced to use it despite security risks. They can then track if the seeker is actually searching for jobs he is likely to get, and he has to make a certain amount of job applications per week. If he doesn’t - his benefits are sanctioned.

I am also worried about the Work Programme - where the unemployed are MADE to go and work for a company - otherwise their benefits are stopped for a couple of weeks or so - while still receiving only £77 a week and having to pay travel costs from that as well as living costs. For myself, I have a dog and a cat and I don’t want to leave my dog alone while I have to go and sit on a bus for a couple of hours and then ‘work’ for 8 hours. The Work Programme is supposed to lead to job offers but it rarely does.

Despite the deliberate targeting of benefit recipients, I read on a website recently that only 4% of the welfare bill is spent on benefits - 70% is spent on pensions.

Dear SilverCamellia,

Cordial greetings and a very good day. Thankyou for your contribution above and I am so pleased that your depression is a great deal better now.

May I just say, dear friend, that I wholeheartedly agree with you that those on the Job Seekers Allowance are also demonised, especially by the ultra right-wing press. They find a rare example of flagrant benefit abuse that no man would dream of defending and try to convince their angry readers that this is ubiquitous and that their taxes are paying for the lavish lifestyle of the ‘cheats’ who everywhere - perhaps even their next-door neighbour. What is so very lamentable is that the chattering middle-class Daily Mail or Sun readers have bought into these lies hook, line and sinker. The politicians then feed upon this anger and whip up more resentment against the jobless and it becomes a vicious circle.

As regards the elderly, dear friend, I think it is grossly unfair that they have escaped unscathed as regards all of the benefit cuts, regardless of their income. That is simply unfair when the sick and disabled are suffering severe hardship. Why does a wealthy pensioner does not need the winter fuel allowance, for example, surely this could be given to a pensioner who is of very slender means and who finds themselves have to decide whether to eat or heat. Many are of the opinion that benefits for pensioners must also be subject to means testing, just as they are for everyone else, especially in times austerity.

By the way, dear friend, I can understand your doubts respecting the Work Programme as I once worked for a government sponsered training provider. They seldom led to full-time employment even for those who proved themselves. Many employers used our people as cheap labour and had no intention of ever employing them, which was disgraceful.

God bless and I will pray for your journey back to the world of work.

Warmest good wishes,

Portrait

Pax

 

[Ridgerunner]

I certainly sympathize with those who are being adversely affected by this in the UK.

Still, I find it fascinating to read. It’s like looking into a crystal ball to where the U.S. is headed.

 

[Spider42]

Still, I find it fascinating to read. It’s like looking into a crystal ball to where the U.S. is headed.

Quickly, it seems to me. In the aftermath of the collapse of 2008, our shelter was overwhelmed as the state slashed services. Some of the people turning to us for help were clearly eligible for various disability benefits.

I don’t want to be too specific but I become involved as an advocate for families with severely disabled children who were previously receiving group home care. The overseeing agency in one particular region desperately wanted to slash these costs so they bypassed state law and contacted the parents directly and told them that there were serious and credible claims of sexual and physical abuse in three facilities and offered immediate assistance in withdrawing the children from the services.

The only problem was that the claims appear to have no basis in truth. The state licensing agency had already investigated a claim and found it not credible, from a dismissed employee, and at odds with the available evidence. From a half confession it appears that is was purely a scare tactic to get parents to voluntarily give up benefits between normally scheduled annual assessments.

When I aired some pretty compelling evidence at a public hearing, I got an answers similar to above, we disagree on how to best serve this community, but it is a difficult situation… I actually agree with the statement above, it is not our place to label people as evil, judgement is for God, but some consciences in public life are seriously malformed.

 

[Portrait]

I find it astonishing that people who disagree with political policies make sweeping statements that the politicians involved are venal and evil.

I can truthfully say that having met many politicians, I have never found a single one who didn’t have an honest intention to do good with the policies they espoused.

Yes, they have differing ideas about what priorities to give to various policies, and what is best for people, but no politician venally chooses to pick on the weakest out of spite or malice of forethought. Agree or disagree with their policies, that is your right… but please refrain from describing them as evil or, indeed, the people in the companies contracted by the government (such as Atos, again, a company I have had dealings with and whom I know to be populated not by ogres and monsters but real people doing their jobs to the best of their abilities).

They are all just trying to find the best path that they can. Maybe they’re mistaken, but it is entirely unjust to judge them in the way that has been demonstrated on this thread.

Dear DexUK,

Cordial greetings and a very good day. Thankyou for your contribution to the discussion.

Government policy, dear friend, is never above criticism and if it is harsh and unjust then it quite rightly deserves to be exposed and denounced as such, especially by those who profess the holy religion of Christ. Unfortunately, in this fallen world political policies can be inequitable and iniquitous, thus being the occasion of untold misery to multitudes of vulnerable people who will suffer, mentally and physically, as a result of them. Therefore an obligation is surely laid upon us, the more so if we name the name of Christ, to inveigh against them and to try and persuade Government to have a change of heart. ATOS work capability assessments have been weighed in the balances and found seriously wanting, not only by the sick and disabled but even by the British Medical Association, who has argued for them to be scrapped as not fit for purpose.

Unfortunately, dear friend, Mr. Cameron and the Coalition are hopelessly and dangerously out of touch with reality as regards the needs of the UK’s sick and disabled. Moreover, I should add, not only out of touch with the reality of the situation facing the sick and disabled, but also with the opinions given by those who profoundly understand disability, both personally and professionally. As a sad consequence, the sick and disabled are now not getting the state support that they need to lead a fulfilling life with dignity and this is a national disgrace. The sick and disabled are a jolly soft target and this Government have mercilessly gone after them to raise a bit of money to make up for the reckless spending of the wealthy and powerful a few years ago. How can this be defended and why should the most vulnerable in society have to carry the can for a financial crisis which was not of their making? Moreover, these people should never be disadvantaged as it is not their fault that they are unwell and cannot support themselves. As Lord Patel, who brilliantly led opposition to disability cuts in the House of Lords, said last year, we have “entered a different type of morality” when we “rob the poor to pay the rich”.

Nobody would deny, dear friend, that we have a deficit in this country, the proverbial billion pound black hole as it were, and we all understand, no matter how basic our grasp of economics, that we must needs fill it somehow. However, why should it be from the pockets of those who need help the most and who are already extremely poor by Western standards? Why are we employing punitive measures against the sick and disabled for the misdeeds of others? Why, instead of directing all of this national vitroil at disabled people, as some politicians and newspaper columnists have done (shame on them), are we not bringing to book those at the top of the financial hierarchy who led us all into the calamitous financial mess that we are now in? Including, but not limited to, CEO’s and Bankers? It is a fundamental issue of social justice.

God bless.

Warmest good wishes,

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Pax

 

[Portrait]

Dearly beloved friends,

Cordial greetings and a very good day.

May I kindly thank all of those UK posters who have taken time to contribute to this thread, I certainly sympathise and understand the disquietude felt regarding the cruel and punitive ongoing welfare reforms implemented by Mr. Cameron’s Coalition. How can our present Government seriously maintain that their ‘tough love’ reforms are in the best interests of the UK’s sick and disabled, especially when it has been repeatedly brought to their notice that the ATOS Work Capability Assessments are not fit for purpose?

Many of us experienced a moment of brief elation last year when GP’s (Family Doctors) at the British Medical Association’s anual conference voted unanimously to ditch, and jolly sharpish, the notorious Work Capability Assessment (WCA). Three cheers and good on them, I say. It is always so very heartening to witness parts of the Establishment break from rank and stand up and be prepared to be counted. The BMA doctors have realised that enough really is enough and that it is time to wash their hands of this grubby little episode once and for all and find a more secure and stringent way of testing sickness and disability. The need for a more efficient and humane system is imperative and not least because even though the UK taxpayer pays the French owned IT company ATOS multi-millions a year to adminsister it, the failure rate of the product is substantial (three quarter of the people ‘processed’ are failed and then win on appeal). Employees of ATOS must surely know that their computer based testing is fundamentally flawed, which is why the appeal tribunals are frequently overturining the decisions of the DWP, who, of course, rely heavily on the unsound ATOS testing process.

It is time, dear friends, that the British public pause for a moment and reflect upon the human cost this all takes on the sick and disabled who are subjected to these harsh and defective WCA undertaken by ATOS. They should think about the negative impact that the tests have upon mental and physical well-being and that rather than aiding the journey back to the world of work, they actually impede people’s progress by exacerbating their condition, possibly rendering them permanently unfit for work. How can that this sort of thing ever be acceptable in a civilised Western society? Unfortunately, Mr. Cameron has thus far steadfastly refused to take any advice as regards the sick and disabled - even those BMA doctors votes last year - and it seems, as in the case of homosexual marriage, he is determined to drive through his will come what may. He is certainly tenacious, I will give him that, but only a foolish and arrogant man rejects wise counsel and compelling evidence with disdain.

What is alarming, dear friends, is that the WCA test is a replica of US disability insurance medical tyranny adopted by ATOS and funded by the DWP (UK Government dept. responsible for administering welfare), as successive British governments used Unum Insurance as ‘advisers’ to reduce the the welfare budget. Now the WCA is very similar to the ‘assessment’ system used by Unum to resist funding payouts on disability insurance, and that includes the administration. Surely we are entitled to ask why a any UK Government would knowingly use one of the most notorious of all corporate insurance giants to ‘advise’ them welfare reform! There have in the past year been powerful documentaries on UK television about ATOS Healthcare assessments (Panorama and Dispatches) and yet they have failed to mention the influence of Unum insurance, I wonder why.

Moreover, dear friends, the WCA uses the highly discredited Bio-Psycho-Social (BPS) model of disability assessment, which is used successfully by the insurance industry and has no medical credibility yet is sweeping the world as a method of deciding the State benefits for sick and vulnerable people. This certainly ought to flash up the warning cones and is grave cause for concern for the UK’s sick and disabled.

These are, dear friends, very dark days for Britain and many of us entertain profound anxiety as regards the future of this once favoured Isle. Where is Mr. Cameron and the Coalition taking us what with cruel welfare reforms and pressing for homosexual ‘marriage’? How deluded they are if they sincerely believe that such wicked policies will be good for Britain and bring God’s blessing down upon us. Mr. Cameron and the Coalition make me feel deeply ashamed to be British and I fear for my countries future prosperity.

God bless.

Warmest good wishes,

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Pax

 

[Portrait]

Dearly beloved friends,

Cordial greetings and a very good day.

Let me make it quite clear, lest there should be any misunderstanding, I freely admit that there is now a deficit in the UK and that this will most probably continue into the lifetime of the next Government after 2015. Moreover, I fully accept as a matter of plain economic common sense that this has to be filled. However, it is inequitable and downright unacceptable that the books should be balanced at the expense of the poor sick and disabled. No man, let alone a professing Catholic, should be defending mercilessly and drastically reducing welfare payments to the genuinely sick and disabled (the vast majority). The present financial crisis was not of their doing and therefore they should not have to pay for the reckless credit card spending of the middle-classes and the errors of the finanial hierarchy who led us all into this calamitous mess. These are the people that should be made to pay for the proverbial billion pound black hole, not the unemployed, working poor or the sick and disabled. Surely, dear friends, this is a matter of simple social justice, which no man can argue against, and the groups that I have mentioned ought to be protected by law and not subject to any cuts, just as the pensioners are already.

Many sick and disabled people, including many of our Catholic brethren, dear friends, are currently enduring severe hardship, either because they have lost their disability entitlements completely or have had them drastically reduced. In addition to this they have to contend with a lengthy and complicated appeals procedure that can take anything up to six months and is the occasion of much stress and anxiety. Even if they win their appeal (and thankfully many do because of the flawed ATOS WCA test), they will still have to complete another form to prove all over again that they are unfit for employment. Thus you have the sad situation of sick and vulnerable people caught in a sort of revolving door where their entire lives are locked in an endless and wearying battle with the DWP. This can obviously affect them very negatively and usually only serves to exacerbate their medical condition, thus rendering them more unfit for work than they already were. Therefore, the current method of assessing our sick and disabled is counter-productive as well as being jolly expensive for the British tax payer in terms of the thousands of appeals against erroneous DWP decisions.

Of course, dear friends, the UK’s sick and disabled must be evaluated as regards their work capability, but this needs to be undertaken by the claimants own family doctor or other health professional who are fully cognizant with their patients illness and back histiory. Surely these only should be making monentous decisions respecting their patients physical/mental health and not some cold and clinical disability analyst who is not acquianted with their case history. Moreover, how can the ATOS analyst make a wholly reliable decision based only on a very short interiview and using the defective and highly discredited Bio-Psycho-Social (BPS) model of disabilty assessment? The British public need to be made aware that being wrongly assessed by an ATOS analyst can result in claimants having complete mental breakdowns, strokes, heart attacks and even taking their own lives. Moreover, they are expected to somehow cope with all the stress and anxiety of appealing a wrong decision and awaiting an outcome - sometimes without the support of a sympathetic GP. Would we really want any of our family members to have to undergo this inhumane treatment if they were seriously unwell, mentally or physically? We need to speak to our local Members of Parliament concerning this grave injustice in our midst and tell them that we think it is morally wrong for it to be happening in a modern civilised Western country.

The present WCA sheme administered by ATOS Healthcare, dear friends, was ill-conceived from the very start and was simply designed to deny disability and get very sick people off benefits at all costs. This is, of course, all very good for the Government as it ingratiates them to the electorate who can see that they are actively going after the supposedly work shy and the alleged multitudes of ‘scroungers’ who, it is claimed, are costing the tax-payer a pretty packet. Only the very gullible or angry readers of the ultra right-wing press would fall for this nonesense, but most thoroughly decent people, including disability advisers, family doctors, mental health professionals and welfare rights groups etc., can see through it all.

It is, dear friends, high time that Mr. Cameron and the Coalition acknowledge that the Work Capability Assessment scheme, as administered by ATOS, is unfit for purpose and apologise to the multitudes of sick and disabled who’s lives have been made an utter misery by this unfair system of evaluation. However, I will not hold my breath and I suspect that Mr. Cameron or Mr. Duncan Smith will never own up to the fact that much of their approach to welfare reform has been mistaken and fundamentally flawed, no more than they will ever accept that they were wrong to try and foist homosexual ‘marriage’ upon us.

God bless and thankyou for reading this.

Warmest good wishes,

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Pax

 

[LostSheepUK]

I find it astonishing that people who disagree with political policies make sweeping statements that the politicians involved are venal and evil.

I can truthfully say that having met many politicians, I have never found a single one who didn’t have an honest intention to do good with the policies they espoused.

Yes, they have differing ideas about what priorities to give to various policies, and what is best for people, but no politician venally chooses to pick on the weakest out of spite or malice of forethought. Agree or disagree with their policies, that is your right… but please refrain from describing them as evil or, indeed, the people in the companies contracted by the government (such as Atos, again, a company I have had dealings with and whom I know to be populated not by ogres and monsters but real people doing their jobs to the best of their abilities).

They are all just trying to find the best path that they can. Maybe they’re mistaken, but it is entirely unjust to judge them in the way that has been demonstrated on this thread.

I can honestly say that I have met many politicians too and yes, they do say they are in the politics game to do good…and yet whenever their Party presents a policy that is so overwhelmingly abhorrent they ALWAYS toe the party line because they do not want to upset their superiors and limit their own political ambitions.

Can you wholeheartedly state that every Tory MP believes that the greater good is being served by the policies being implemented by the current Govt? You do not have to follow any of the biased media, or ultra factions of the British political system to read examples of how the disabled, vulnerable, needy etc are being driven to despair and poverty.

I would agree, to an extent, that an MP initially enters into public life with the INTENTION to do good, but eventually (as the Expenses Scandal highlighted all too well) they eventually become self-serving hypocrites. Of course, this does not apply to all of the 650 MPs that sit in The House of Commons and it would be foolish of anyone to think that. there are some excellent MPs who are prepared to stick their heads over the parapet on behalf of their constituents, but I will never be dissuaded from the opinion that - when it comes down to Party politics and implementation of policies - the majority ignore their constituents.

I pray daily for the Govt to reassess their priorities and to put more effort into growing our economy, investing in jobs and growth and education, rather than demonising people like those who have posted on this thread.

 

[Portrait]

I can honestly say that I have met many politicians too and yes, they do say they are in the politics game to do good…and yet whenever their Party presents a policy that is so overwhelmingly abhorrent they ALWAYS toe the party line because they do not want to upset their superiors and limit their own political ambitions.

Can you wholeheartedly state that every Tory MP believes that the greater good is being served by the policies being implemented by the current Govt? You do not have to follow any of the biased media, or ultra factions of the British political system to read examples of how the disabled, vulnerable, needy etc are being driven to despair and poverty.

I would agree, to an extent, that an MP initially enters into public life with the INTENTION to do good, but eventually (as the Expenses Scandal highlighted all too well) they eventually become self-serving hypocrites. Of course, this does not apply to all of the 650 MPs that sit in The House of Commons and it would be foolish of anyone to think that. there are some excellent MPs who are prepared to stick their heads over the parapet on behalf of their constituents, but I will never be dissuaded from the opinion that - when it comes down to Party politics and implementation of policies - the majority ignore their constituents.

I pray daily for the Govt to reassess their priorities and to put more effort into growing our economy, investing in jobs and growth and education, rather than demonising people like those who have posted on this thread.

Dear LostSheepUK,

Cordial greetings and a very good day. Hear, hear, jolly well said and a hearty Amen. Your remarks above are bang on target.

Alas, many of our MP’s are self-serving and are only concerned that if they court controversy or support unpopular causes they will incur the displeasure of the Party hierarchy. Politics today, dear friend, is, I fear, all about wining and keeping the middle-class vote and not noble principles. Thankfully, some do indeed have the courage of their convictions and will protest against injustices but they have to tread jolly cautiously if they are going contrary to their Parties policies.

These are, dear friend, very dark days for Britain and I think that there is a sad and shameful hardening of attitudes towards the sick and disabled and the poor generally, which is nothing short of disgraceful when so many have so many material blessings. The urgent need of the hour is surely for more sympathy and compassion, not less. Well, I had better stop or they will call me a ‘bleeding heart liberal’ and say that the answer is the ‘tough love’ approach to welfare!

God bless and thankyou for your imput into the discussion.

Warmest good wishes,

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Pax

 

[Portrait]

Dearly beloved friends,

Cordial greetings and a very good day. This will be my final post in this thread but may I just thank all those who have taken the time to respond and contribute, especially those resident in the UK. Thankyou so very much for sharing your experiences.

The present UK Government, dear friends, promised to protect the sick and vulnerable but this they have woefully failed to do, as even this thread has demonstrated. Moreover, there have been television documentaries (e.g. ‘Britain on the Sick’ Channel 4) which have shown beyond any doubt that the degrading processes by which the UK’s sick and disabled are assessed is unsound and not fit for purpose. The Channel 4 documentary, refered to above, actually used covert filming to investigate the flawed WCA test, used by ATOS Healthcare to determine whether benefit claimants should be declared fit for work (the programme can still be viewed on line). It is a disturbing programme and it is hard to believe that this sort of thing goes on in a progressive country such as the UK., but evidently it does.

Sadly, dear friends, the extreme right-wing media have systematically brainwashed people into believing that most of those in receipt of welfare benefits are ‘living it up’ and having a jolly good time at the tax-payers expense. Mr. Cameron has irresponsibly whipped up public anger and prejudice against the sick and disabled by speaking of a ‘sick note culture’. Consequently, there is now in modern Britain almost a presumption of malingering and that a significant percentage of welfare claimants are more than likely being dishonest respecting the gravity of their physical/mental condition. However, disability-related fraud is estimated at a mere 0.5%, thus it is only an infinitesimally small number of sickness benefit claimants who are milking the system, something that most unprejudiced people have known all along. Certainly the feckless and dishonest ought to be brought to book and severely dealt with, but it must be acknowledged that such miscreants are a minority and that the vast majority are bona-fide claimants with serious illnesses which preclude them from being a part of the work force.

All Mr. Cameron and the Coalition have succeced in doing is demonsing the vast honest majority of sick and disabled in the eyes of their fellow countrymen and for that he, and others responsible for welfare reform, should hang their heads in shame. This, dear friends, is jolly un-British and only shows that he and the Coalition Government are profoundly out of touch with reality and appear to lack basic human compassion. They have been repeatedly shown evidence that the ATOS WCA tests are fundamentally flawed and not fit for purpose, yet they continue, thus far, to stubbornly refuse to listen. There is a sort of recalcitrant refusal to listen to the overwhelming evidence, even from those who either professionally or personally know better (e.g. the doctors at the BMA annual conference, who voted to ditch the defective WCA test as administered by ATOS Healthcare). Many of us are of the opinion that the present UK Government are in danger of falling into disability denial, if they have not already done so. This is a national disgrace and surely a violation of the human rights of the sick and disabled.

Dearly beloved friends, my plea is for UK Catholics to protest strongly against the injustices now being perpetrated against our countries sick and vulnerable, many of whom are being wrongly declared fit for work by the flawed ATOS tests. We have a moral obligation to be champions of justice and to criticise and condemn unfair and harsh legislation that causes suffering and misery to our fellow citizens. We need to let our politicians know that we are unhappy with the current welfare reform programme and plead with them to have a change of heart. Alas, we are now on a path that can only lead to deepening division within our society, to say nothing of social unrest.

God bless and thankyou kindly for reading. May all those viewing this thread, and those that have contributed, have a jolly splendid weekend, whatever are your plans.

Warmest good wishes,

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Pax:tiphat: