[joeysteele]

Originally Posted by the truth

the most vulnerable are the disabled and the sick and elderly all of whom have been ignored for decades

I agree as to that and they are the ones who are actually suffering now at these reforms, to name 2 instances I know of.

A friend of mine who who was brain damaged in a car accident, has had his benefits reduced twice now, after these new assessments as to ESA. his family and myself and his other friends have had to spend ages sorting things out for him, he cannot express himself and cannot walk.

Twice, these ATOS people employed by this Govt have hauled him in for a face to face assessment.
Twice the DWP have reduced his benefits.
We have appealed twice and had the appeal upheld and the decision overturned.
Still it goes on.
The stress, worry and confusion this has caused to him and all involved in his care is enormous.

We have to all to do again too when he will have to re-apply for PIP as opposed to DLA when that change gets round to him too.
That is the effects of these reforms on genuine sick and disabled and therefore vulnerable too.

This bedroom tax, I know of someone in a house with 4 bedrooms, he and his wife have 3 daughters at present.
They have been told that at least 2 of the girls should share, so that means they have a spare bedroom, it is a tiny box room really but the Local Authority class it as a bedrrom.
He claims housing benefit and will be £40 a month worse off.

Again no fault of theirs as to this, they have the secured tenancy and were told these were entitlements they should claim, now at a stroke they are being penalised for being on a very low income.
They are also vulnerable and to me anyway, this is totally wrong.

As to genuine sick and disabled vulnerable people getting a rotten deal as to these reforms the list must be massive.
This rotten Govt ignores completely these issues and as to the first instance I posted, Duncan Smith would tell you that shouldn't happen but he doesn't do a single thing about it when he and his department are told of them happening.

I don't agree the elderly have been ignored for decades, with the increasing of cold weather payments from under £7,(under the Conservatives), up to £25 by the last Labour Govt, and the introduction of pension credit plus the winter fuel allowance and restoration of free bus passes, more was started to be being done for the elderly and a great many elderly were massively grateful for those moves too.

You won't hear much of that from the Daily Mail though.