[joeysteele]

Any decent Politician worth anything at all would be fighting tooth and nail against the guidelines laid out for the DWP and these ATOS re-aasessments.

This is causing chaos and the appeals are costing far more than the re-assessments almost,what we don't hear is the significant number of appeals that are successful,yet the Govt,this heartless Govt, goes on with these new tests and guidelines.
I would in an instant action, get rid of ATOS and totally plan the procedures again.

I am myself though, personally furious at these policies as set up by the totally heartless Ian Duncan Smith who just about lies through his teeth when he says all this is to benefit the genuine sick and disabled and most vulnerable.
In fact it is doing the opposite and causing massive stress and putting intense pressure on the genuinely sick,disabled and their carers and families.

I have a friend,older than myself who was brain damaged a few years ago in a serious accident, he has in the last 4 years been to these ATOS things twice already in that time.
Last time he went,after the face to face interview,a letter was sent saying he was losing some of his benefits as he was considered able for some work.
I, with his family, appealed against that decision and the judgement was that it was a totally wrong decision and the appeal was upheld and all his funds were returned and backdated.

Now this very week,he received a letter stating the same process is going on again, he has to have filled in another atrociously long questionnaire, despite all that which only happened early last year.
This is because the benefits are changing and they need to see if he can get ESA, also if he will be in the work related grouping for it or the support grouping if he is deemed entitled to it.

Again, more stress on his carers and family, more to the point though, the waste of all the time of phone calls to and from the DWP, also the paperwork and then the likely assessments face to face to come too.

He can hardly communicate,I find this heartless and really also inhumane, I am longing to get the chance to sound off at the Lib Dems for ever supporting these changes and causing so much pain to the most vulnerable.
I have said for a fair while here now that the Conservatives have given Duncan Smith far too much of a free run on these reforms, it is going too far and almost now seems more like a vendetta against the sick,disabled and most vulnerable.

This Govt will surely be judged in history as one of the most unjust, ruthless and heartless ever in relation to the genuine weakest in its society.
For crying out loud, I was livid when I learned about the letter and phone call this week again as to my Friends changeover of benefits and this whole stressful process to go through yet again.

Duncan Smith claims to be a Christian for goodness sake, in my view he is the biggest turn off as to Christianity and in my view, he should have no influence any longer in affecting other peoples lives and incomes.

The Conservatives would not even trust him to lead them into an election,I can see why for sure now.
I just wish people would scream at this Govt that people do believe in welfare and benefit reform but not in victimisation and discrimination which is exactly what has happened in practice in the implementation of these heartless policies as laid out by the Conservatives and fully 100% supported by the cowardly and pathetic Lib Dems.

My apologies this is so long but I really am furious at the events of this week and really sickened at the heartlessness of this Govt and this policy now.
In fact, if I had not had a friend who was in this situation, I would have found it very hard likely to believe any Govt could even contemplate setting out to bring in such a heartless and rotten policy in the UK.
Having seen it for myself and also getting involved in the appeals process too, I have had a great education,it is a pity Ministers and Politicians who demonise the vulnerable don't get out and see it for themselves too.