I feel increasingly helpless. I'm getting more and more comments, often on old posts, from people who are desperate because they, or someone in their family, has had their benefits stopped. It's heart-rending, and there's virtually nothing I can do except advise them to go to the CAB.
The situation is made very clear in an article in the Observer online today by the food critic Jay Rayner about "Food Bank Britain". He doesn't just focus on the Trussell Trust, although they feature. He also looks at the Real Aid charity in Hull. The experience is the same. And Chris Johns of Oxfam's UK Poverty Programme is clear why it's happening. It's not just changing benefits provision, he says, but "the way government agencies temporarily remove benefits for perceived misdemeanours: a failure to sign the right paperwork, or apply for the right training scheme." And then the same agency that sanctioned them gives them a food bank voucher. In Fulham there's a woman getting food from the Trussell Trust who is her husband's full-time carer and has three children. The benefits agency discovered an overpayment of £600 in 2009, they insist (although the woman says she would have noticed) and have stopped their benefits for a month to recoup it. (Just as an aside, it used to be the case that overpayments couldn't be reclaimed if the mistake was not made by the client.) Other cases are cited. In Hull, Real Aid don't use vouchers, but charge £1.50 for the food. A lot of people actually prefer this. And they are giving the help to people who are working or who are pensioners, because they don't have enough money to buy food.
The article cites the claims of Lord Freud, who doesn't accept that the increase in the use of food banks has anything to do with increased need.
The evidence is overwhelming, but the government doesn't care. It still refuses to publish the data on sanctions. Why?
And then we get this. The most disgusting, lying, vile piece rubbish that the Express has managed to come up with, in collaboration with the equally disgusting Iain Duncan Smith. What is there to say? It's a torrent of lies, of words designed specifically and unashamedly to lie. I am too furious to be coherent about it at the moment.
... Because they don't care? All we can do is stick together. You know the saying "Don't let the -------- grind you down"
ReplyDeleteits getting worse, I personally know 3 people sanctioned due to adviser error. They have asked for my advice and I directed them to CAB. It is all I can do..The government doesn't want to listen as it is all Ideology. It is very scary and will only get worse 2 more years to go
ReplyDeleteIt is clear that the ultimate objective of the Tories is to end the Welfare State and replace it with the kind of social welfare we saw in the 19th Century. These provisions were inadequate and were frequently attacked by liberal thinkers. The suituation worsened during the inter-war depression with unemployment the single biggest political issue.
ReplyDeleteIt was in this context that the Welfare State was created, to tackle poverty in a more complete and effective way. It has been an unqualified success. During the last 70 years the basic standard living has improved for everyone. In short, the state was successful were charity (inc. foodbanks) and the private sector FAILED.
The Tories attack on benefits has nothing to do with fairness. It is a deliberate and conscious attack on the ideology that underpinned the creation of the Welfare State i.e. Liberalism.
The Tories NEVER supported the Beveridge Report, hence the fact that Winston Churchill was booted out of office.
Should this gov't get a mandate at the next election to end the Welfare State they will do so, regardless of the effect, the increase in poverty and hardship and the misery it will cause.
It is sickening that a party so ignorant of the past can be in control of gov't.
When I signed on last week,I noticed increased security (All were very nice) I ended waiting for 45+ minutes due it being busy and I did eavesdrop,not very hard due to the close quarters.It became apparent that the majority were either being told that they were being sanctioned on recommendations from the WP,mostly younger people or they were School/College leavers and were not eligible to sign on till Sept.When my turn came I did ask what was going on? "9 Months till I retire" was probably the most honest answer that I have heard from a JCP Adviser,I also asked has she ever seen it this bad,she did not answer,but I could tell what the answer was.
ReplyDeleteOn recommendations from the work programme? you have a right to know on what grounds. ASK.
DeleteComing to the end of my....I am not really sure how to describe the WP experience? The new attack is the fact that I am homeless,after 21 Months they now want a list of everybody that I have stayed with,I found this perplexing and asked why? For our records...Are you a housing Authority?..No..Will you help me find Housing? Yes,we will give you the Councils phone number...Wow,I had not thought of that,and all you want in return is a list of names of people that have given me shelter..NOT!
ReplyDelete"I am too furious to be coherent about it at the moment."
ReplyDeleteYou are, of course, right to be angry. More people should be. There's an awful lot to be angry about. The minute you stop being angry is the minute you stop caring and the minute that "they" have won. Just keep spreading the word.
Angry? Yes,but I have just started to realize that I do have a full time job,trying to keep both the JCP and WP happy,I am just going through the motions and it is moving me further away from the job market.Recently I had a chance at a part time job 20 hours a week,but they hold 1 week back and only pay monthly,this is not taken into account,by the time my first pay packet arrived I would be in arrears more than I earned,their advice? Get an advance or a pay day loan.
DeleteYou can tell when the country is in a mess, both financially and socially when we see WORKING families relying on benefits and food banks. For Freud to suggest there is no link between the use of food banks and increased need shows we probably have the worst political class in a generation, if not two!
ReplyDeleteAnother depressing and shocking sign of the times is this story in Hull that reveals mothers are turning to prostitution to put bread on the table! Pretty Woman it isn't!
As for the Express, I thought newspapers were supposed to campaign on major issues and scrutinise the government of the day. Not to be their unofficial mouthpieces and cheerleaders. For shame!
P.S. Cameron wants to put a porn filter so people have to 'opt in' to access this material. I wonder how he feels about the Express championing his policies being owned by porn baron, Richard Desmond?
Whoops, sorry, forgot to include the link:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.hulldailymail.co.uk/Mums-selling-sex-feed-children-benefit-cuts-hit/story-19650230-detail/story.html
Back in 1900 children used to die, and the cause of death listed on the death certificate was malnutrition.
ReplyDeleteI wonder how long it is going to be before people start dieing of hunger and will anybody care?
IDS amazes me,he talks absolute rubbish and then gives out £44 Million in bonuses to civil servants for doing their job....Austerity? After cutting staff and saving XXX amount,they have now hired some back as consultants on up too £1000 per day,his logic is even after that,the savings are still more than the cost,but where did the savings come from? A reduction in benefits/sanctions and a basic drubbing of people that have a need of what they are entitled to,remember they made up the rules to(MP's) qualify for these,it reminds me of an Insurance Company that has collected the premiums and now denies your claim rather than payout..Is their fraud? I am sure their is,but look at A4E,G4S,Atos,Serco all have been accused,but it seems to get swept under the carpet with nothing than a slap on the wrist and another round of contracts.
ReplyDeleteA friend of mine brings her pay stub into the Council monthly so that they can calculate her HB after 2 years they have still not gotten it right,she is contracted to work 18 hours per week,but often exceeds this and pays full rent of £80 per week,recently she asked how much she owed in rent arrears(the bailiffs showed up 14 Months ago) she was in credit over £600 asked why she was not informed about this the reply was we only inform you when you are in arrears,she started to pay £40 per week as they will not refund it in bulk,after 6 weeks they have now informed her that her housing benefit from 16 months ago was miscalculated and she is in arrears,her defence is that for the last 2 years they have had all the info,so who is at fault?
ReplyDeleteIf she gave them the correct information, then they are. Does she not get a statement at regular intervals?
DeleteNo,a demand letter if she is arrears,the Council offloaded all council houses to a housing association as well as a lot of council workers and their computer systems are not compatible,can't wait until Universal Credit takes effect!
DeleteThe Daily Express and the term "official figures"? That is deeply amusing. Ah yes, the Daily Express - the bible of accuracy.
ReplyDeleteWhat the Daily Express forgot to mention is right-wing benefit claiming.
David Cameron claimed Disability Living Allowance from the hardworking taxpayer, despite being a multi-millionaire. He didn't need this money - Call me Dave personally increased the deficit.
Iain Duncan Smith claimed Job Seekers Allowance, twice. This is despite that IDS sponges off his uber-rich wife, Betty - so he had no reason to claim benefits either.
The culture of entitlement and "something for nothing" culture is truly alive in the Tory party.
If these "scrounging" right wingers don't stop taking taxpayer hand-outs, we could end up like Greece.
The suppression of sanction statistics is infuriating. As, despite being subject to QA for over 3 months, the plan is supposedly to release them one day, they benefit from S22 exemption from FOI. It might be worth someone making an FOI request about the QA process itself, though - I would love to, but for a number of reasons I'd prefer not to. As far as I know, the process hasn't changed (although the penalties have), so I'm struggling to understand why this delayed release should be much more difficult than previous ones.
ReplyDeleteWith regard to feeling angry - almost everything this government does enrages me. In an earlier post, someone mentioned the 2011 riots. Whilst there's no way I'd wish a repeat of a situation in which people died, homes were lost and businesses ruined, I wish the public was a little more motivated and better able to recognise and defend itself when it's effectively under sustained attack from a group and class of people who wish it harm. A Sunday columnist (Rawnsley?) wrote an article a while ago about the government behaving as though it was an invading, foreign power, and that's exactly how it feels for a large part of the country, defined by the government with laser-like precision.
One doesn't have to be a Marxist to see false consciousness here. The government's most successful strategy has been to turn the poor against the extremely poor, and threaten both with the terms that they either comply, or become destitute.
So - anyone want to try a sanctions FOI, bearing in mind that asking for the statistics themselves is likely to be unsuccessful first time round?
Historian, I feel for you, my friend, I really do. I'm going through some hard times at the moment and are having a hard time coping with some serious issues, aside from those to do with employment. I know what it's like to feel that you are powerless. There is at least one consilation.; this blog. Fighting the good fight and informing people of what is going on in the world of benefits is a real help to many people, me included. There comes a point when you need to take stock of the situation. Step back and decide how best to continue. No one here is expecting you to work miracles, just to keep people informed. If you can do that, which you've done flawlessly so far, then that should suffice. Don't be so hard on yourself: that's a road to dispare and it's not a fun one, trust me.
ReplyDeleteKeep it coming or going, whichever you prefer, just don't let it get you too down.
I think that indifference towards the poor has been growing over the last ten years. I certainly noticed a change in attitude towards the disadvantaged around 2002 and 2003.
ReplyDeleteThe Tories are just jumping on a horse that already started to run. The public support the cuts to social security that are being imposed - remember that Cameron U-turns on any policy that looks to be unpopular with his key voters, so the fact that these cuts are going ahead despite of the suffering they are causing is an indication that they are supported by a majority of key voters in the South East of England.
The working poor people are usually uneducated, and so seek simple answers to complicated questions: when they struggle to survive are besieged by debt collectors and paying half their incomes to pay the mortgages of landlords then they want to vent their anger.
They cannot vent their rage against their employers who are not paying them what their labour is worth because they will simply be dismissed and replaced by somebody else; they cannot refuse to pay their debts because the monies owed will be taken directly from their wages or their paid from the sale of their belongings; they have no choice other than to pay rent to private sector landlords because there is no council housing for them to move into.
Because they cannot strike back against the real sources of their problems, the working poor do what victims have done throughout history - they hit at those even weaker then themselves.
In 18th century Russia this took the form of pogroms against Jews. In New York in the late 19th century unemployed Irish workers turned on recently freed black slaves.
The "strivers v, scroungers" policy, is only the latest manifestation of the old aristocracies policy of dividing the people against themselves.
The prospect of rioting does not disturb the aristocracy. Any disorder can easily be put down by the police, and if necessary the military. Civil unrest increases the unpopularity of the poor and acts as a pretext to increased surveillance.
The only thing that scares the aristocracy is the poor taking responsibility for their own destiny by forming co-ops to grow and sell food; organize adult training schemes; setting up business that are run by communities for the benefit of communities; forming credit unions.
The poor CAN vastly improve their lot by organizing a parallel society, using the free market against itself to become independent of the free market that is organized and run against their interests.
Will any of this happen? Of course not - the chavs are too busy watching Coronation Street and sitting around talking about the latest football results to take action to better the lives of their children and themselves.
Very true: http://www.jrf.org.uk/media-centre/tough-attitudes-poverty
Delete'The poor CAN vastly improve their lot by organizing a parallel society'. Easier said than done, especially when the trade unions and the Labour Party are so weak and the poor are, well, poor i.e. they lack the capital to start their own businesses and challenge the economic status quo.
DeleteHistorically, the only REALISTIC way someone from a low social and economic background could greatly improve their income and status was to get a superior vocational or academic qualification. Much to my regret I took the latter. I have a 2:1 in History and it is not worth the paper it is written on. I have been out of work for four years.
You see, I HAVE worked and I HAVE tried to better myself (by going to university) but I am STILL out of work.
Unemployment and poverty are not problems caused by a lack of knowledge or laziness on behalf of the poor (as you suggest) but a lack of OPPORTUNITES i.e. training and jobs.
'The prospect of rioting does not disturb the aristocracy'. The prospect of the spirit of French and European revolutions spreading to Britain frightened the elite in to introducing the Great Reform Acts and, later, many social reforms.
Really shocked to read this post from the normally calm and collected Historian. I totally understand your anger and hope that you do not give up as you and your website provide an extremely valuable news service in regards to W2W and changes to benefits and the stories of the people affected. Even signposting people to CAB is better than nothing, I mean what else is there?
ReplyDeleteI completely share your frustration and understand how dealing in this everyday can be really depressing. I myself try to not read your website first thing in the AM as it can be a pretty miserable start to the day (no offence)!
All I can say is keep going.
We need more of what you do, and hopefully we can all raise awareness of the unfairness of what is happening. If anything, you should try and get more people involved and expand the range of services you offer. I sure that many of your readers would be happy to contribute a wee bit more.
Best Wishes
According to The Sunday Mirror of 18 August, Labour MP Dave Watts accuses the DWP of not processing claims within 16 days and this leads to hardship. There is also an article about a proper probe into zero-hours contracts. Hopefully Politicians of oppossing parties will take heed...
DeleteAnother bit of news which will not surprise anyone here. - "Local authorities warn on youth unemployment schemes"http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23730015
DeleteOne incompetent government after another. Very depressing indeed.
It is hearbtreaking and it is outrageous.
ReplyDeleteSooner or later there will be a riot at one of these foodbanks. Some desperate individual will lose it.
What can we do? Most people seem to be living on on the breadline, but on a knife edge. The only other advice I can suggest is to go to your local church, and perhaps contact the local press. Maybe kick up a stink that way, but there's no guarantees they will listen. Most of them are in bed with local business overlords who are osensibly tory filth anyway.
Certainly go to the CAB, but be prepared to wait. They are overstretched and aren't immune from cuts either.
I can only speak for myself,I have approached the Council about housing over the last 3 years,never good news,but in the last few months,since the Bedroom tax has come in no hope,while 3 beds sit empty all others are full. The advice given is to stay with family or friends(Council) the JCP wants to know where in order to see if they are in violation of HB,if they offered a solution I could understand,but it seems like a witch hunt!
DeleteThe Mirror reports that a Tory councillor has quit the party in disgust at the hated Bedroom Tax.
DeleteMr Shapps is MP for Welwyn Hatfield, Herts, where 100 three-bed houses are being reclassified as two beds so tenants can avoid the tax.
Maybe other Councils will follow suit.
Just to say. I have suffered two attempted sanctions, 'doubts' raised by the Work Programme provider, due to their own error. Thankfully I had kept the necessary paperwork, which was accepted by the Department for Work and Pensions. It was an unnerving few days on each occasion, and no redress from the WP.
ReplyDeleteNice shade of pink and cream on this blog.
The question that keeps arising,but goes unanswered is what exactly does the WP provide? Blanket statements like Tailored support and Training are vague,hiding behind the Black Box method of delivering the WP is getting old. I have asked time and again what is available and get the same response"We will use any legal method available to find you employment"just what does that mean? and what is the big secret about what is available? My personal conclusion is that they have no plan,no resources and no Bloody clue! This is not about the unemployed,it is about keeping the Contracts and money flowing to the crooked SOB's.
ReplyDeleteLate 2008-early 09 I went to a provider, recommended to me because they were geared largely though not exclusively, towards people with disabilities, as I have Aspergers, for their programme called "Flexible Routeways". I was disillusioned with it as I didn't see worthwhile introduction to potential employers but just school-style motivation classes and stupid role playing exercises about nuclear bunkers and plane crashes. Posts in other blogs suggest many have found this too. What help to find employment?
DeleteA former Sports Direct employee has launched a legal action against the company over its use of zero-hours contracts in a case that could set a precedent for hundreds of thousands of British workers hired under the controversial employment terms.
ReplyDeleteZahera Gabriel-Abraham, 30, quit her job at the retailer after suffering panic attacks that she blames on her family's lack of financial security – the result, she says, of a contract that offered no guaranteed work or income.Apparantly 20 thousand of 23 thousand employees are on zero hours contracts. Reported in The Gaurdian 7 August 2013.