Tag Archives: Cuts

The Ravages of Austerity – An Analysis

austerity

The current form of austerity was introduced by the Conservative-Liberal coalition government that came to power in 2010. The world was still recovering from the aftermath of the financial ‘crash’ of 2008; the most significant global economic downturn since the Great Depression (1929-39). It is effectively a campaign of budget cutting designed to reduce the UK’s (at the time) unsustainable

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Highland Pupils Walk Out Over Cuts To Pupil Support

Pupil Support Protest in Highlands with sign saying; Education is an investment, not a cost.

School children and parents staged a protest outside The Highland Council headquarters in Inverness on Friday over planned cuts to pupil support for those with additional support needs. The children walked out of lessons to protest the Independent run Highland Council’s three-year “phased approach” to reduce the number of Additional Support Needs teachers (ASNs) and Pupil Support Assistants (PSAs). Highland

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Disabled workers on Tax Credits set lose £4,420 when moved to Universal Credit

Disabled Workers and the DWP Logo

Disabled workers on Tax Credits can currently receive additional premiums, a Disabled Element (WE) and a Severe Disability Element (SDE). However, if they’re moved to Universal Credit there’s no provision for these and it will see claimants lose over £4,000 a year. There’s been much talk on the news about the loss of the Severe Disability Premium (SDP) for claimants

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University study labels Austerity as ‘Social Murder’

Philip Hammond Budget 2018

A study by The University of Lancaster on the effects of austerity in the social security system has labelled the policy as ‘social murder’. While this is of no surprise to many, it does add weight to the growing calls to end cuts to the benefit system. The research titled:“‘Violent proletarianisation: social murder, the reserve army of labour and social

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DWP cuts Xmas Bonus by backdoor in shock to Universal Credit claimants

  The DWP has revealed that claimants used to receiving the one-off Christmas Bonus on legacy benefits such as Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), are no longer entitled to the additional money once they’ve moved onto Universal Credit. The Christmas Bonus is a one-off, tax-free £10 payment made to people on certain benefits in the first week of December. It

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Don’t let the UN poverty report get lost in Brexit Translation – ACT

Professor Philip Alston, the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur for Extreme Poverty and Human Rights will deliver the preliminary findings of his investigation into UK poverty tomorrow. Conveniently for the government, the mainstream press will likely be to busy covering Brexit to push the findings. This will be the fifth, (yes fifth), report by the UN since 2010 and although

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Esther McVey admits millions will lose £200 a month on Universal Credit

Esther McVey Conservative Party Conference 2018

The Times have reported that Work and Pensions Secretary Esther McVey has told Cabinet colleagues that about half of lone parents and nearly two thirds of couples with children would lose a whopping £2,400 a year. Tory MPs are finding it harder to defend the under fire benefit as they deal with more and more cases related to Universal Credit

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Radical Action – Why I think DWP agents hold the key to forcing change

DWP - Department for Work and Pensions sign

It is well know that Universal Credit is causing hardship, suffering even death. While the public are all too aware of this, employees of The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) are living it everyday. That’s why I’m proposing radical action. I will admit that this may not be the most popular of ideas but ask that you hear me

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DWP told Motability my claim is suspended

Motability suspended

I naively thought the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) couldn’t make any more “errors” in my case. Well no they have gone and told Motability that I no longer have a Disability Living Allowance (DLA) or Personal Independence Payment (PIP) claim. This is despite me being awarded enhanced PIP just two weeks ago and having previously been on DLA.

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New Private Funded DWP HQ in Wales gets Recommended despite Union Job Fears

Rhondda DWP HQ

Planning has recommended for a massive new back-office HQ for the Department for Work and Pensions – DWP in the welsh town of Rhondda Cynon Taff. You’d wonder were they’re getting the money when they are claiming they need to making savings. Well in true Tory fashion like over £1 billion other government assets it is “forward funded”, (ie;rent due), by

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An Introduction to Life Inside Universal Credit’s Nerve Centre

Hi everybody, My name is Bayard, I am a former telephony agent from Universal Credit. I was an employee there for two years and my duties consisted of answering queries, calculating and issuing payments, handling complaints and requests for reconsiderations, booking appointments, issuing advances, and quite a few other things.  Our responsibilities on telephony evolved over the time I was

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Judge accuses DWP of trying to hide compensation settlement made to discriminated men

DWP Sign Caxton House

“You are the government, and we should know what you are doing and what you are spending.” This is what High Court Judge Justice Lewis said when ordering the Department for Work and Pensions  – DWP to disclose details of a compensation settlement made to two men the High Court ruled were unlawfully discriminated against because of their disability.

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McVey begs think tank for ideas to rescue Universal Credit and ‘bars’ BBC from speech

Esther Mcvey Parliament

Work and Pensions Secretary lies through her teeth at a speech to Reform think tank whilst begging for their ideas. In a shock twist, a BBC Journalist was barred from attending. He has called out the DWP for their substandard roll-out of Universal Credit before and now McVey has gone full Trump. Yesterday Esther McVey made a speech to think tank

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