Southport’s Liberal Democrat candidate John Wright recently proposed to give free bus passes to the country’s young carers.
https://www.otsnews.co.uk/free-bus-passes-southports-young-carers-lib-dem-plan/
That seems like a kind-hearted gesture and one that would be very welcome. However, this well-meant proposal may miss out on the bigger picture.
In order to have an official carer the person being cared for has to be granted Personal Independence Payment (PIP). So, if you are granted PIP then the person caring for you can claim for carer’s allowance. Nevertheless, if you are refused PIP then the person that has cared for you will lose their carer’s allowance.
The hostile Tory government has denied PIP to and discriminated against thousands of the most vulnerable people in society who previously had financial help due to their physical and mental health conditions.
Many tales of discrimination proliferate.
A cancer sufferer, Kathy Hall, who was given months to live claims she has had her benefits stopped because she has survived longer than expected.
A man in Birkenhead suffering from excruciating ulcerous feet was judged fit to walk by DWP (department for work and pensions).
Kloey Clarke, from Devizes in Wiltshire, has had severe anxiety and type II bipolar disorder for six years. and was told she no longer qualified for financial help.
Since PIP was introduced in 2013, replacing the previous Disability Living Allowance, 2,190 desperate people in Preston applied for a mandatory reconsideration. The DWP rejected the appeal in 85 per cent of cases.
Tory discrimination against people with mental health problems
People with mental health conditions such as psychosis, anxiety, depression autism and low mood are at far greater risk of having their benefits stopped than those with physical ailments, research shows.
According to the latest figures from the Department for Work and Pensions, more than half of existing epilepsy patients and two-thirds of new claimants are being denied disability benefits.
Dr Jed Boardman, a spokesman for the Royal College of Psychiatrists and an expert on welfare and mental health, said: “A benefits system that discriminates against people with mental ill-health should not be tolerated.
Horror stories are legion of the neediest people being denied PIP help exist all over the country, thanks to the unsympathetic Tory cuts.
If PIP is denied then the carer who looks after the person denied PIP is also denied Carers’ allowance. This means that although the devoted carer still aids the vulnerable person they no longer get financial help from this cold-hearted government to do so.
Therefore, perhaps Southport’s Lib Dem candidate should be vigorously highlighting such Tory-instigated discrimination and blatant DWP injustice against our most defenceless residents, rather than just focusing on free bus passes for the diminishing group of careers?
It is claimed that the DWP have staged questions to ensure that many vulnerable fail to meet their impossible criteria.
The performance of the two companies carrying out disability benefit assessments on behalf of the government is continuing to deteriorate, according to new figures released by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). The DWP figures, released to Disability News Service (DNS) under the Freedom of Information Act, show that the proportion of personal independence payment (PIP) assessments carried out by outsourcing giant Capita that lead to a complaint has risen significantly in the last three years.
One multiple sclerosis patient lost her PIP of £87 per month – because she was able to squeeze someone’s thumb. The discrimination is astounding and must be challenged as a basic attack on human rights.
Vulnerable people in the UK are suffering now, due to the fascist-like Tory regime of unmitigated discrimination currently in place.
Why are our politicians not screaming about this appalling situation now?
What does Damien Moore MP have to say about the misery his despotic government has created for many vulnerable people that have been wrongly denied PIP and Carer’s allowances?
Big smiles and self-promotional photoshoots will not help!
More:
https://www.otsnews.co.uk/universal-credit-dwp-culture-indifference-claim-public-accounts-committee/
https://www.otsnews.co.uk/universal-credit-fiasco-hitting-uks-vulnerable-families-hardest/
https://www.otsnews.co.uk/southport-mp-asked-hiding-vote-keep-universal-credit-report-public/
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