Financial Support for Carers - Not Fit for Purpose
+ CARER WATCH SUBMISSION INTO DWP SELECT COMMITTEE ENQUIRY INTO CARER STRATEGY ACCEPTED INTO EVIDENCE
May 29th, 2008
The Carer Watch submission to the DWP Select Enquiry into the Government’s Carers Strategy is now published on the DWP Select Committteee site at:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmselect/cmworpen/memo/485/contents.htm
It is also available in the comment below.
+ EDM Carers and the 10% Tax Rate
April 25th, 2008
Many thanks to Andrew Stunnell who has tabled an EDM on behalf of carers. Please contact your own MP’s and request that they support Mr Stunnells EDM.
Lib dem MP Andrew Stunnell has tabled this Early Day Motion in the House of Commons.
EFFECT OF THE ABOLITION OF THE 10 PENCE TAX RATE ON CARERS
22.04.2008
Stunell, Andrew & 16 others
That this House notes that carers’ earnings cannot exceed £95 net per week in order to qualify for the carer’s allowance benefit, that maximum individual earnings combined with the carer’s allowance equates to only £7,568 per annumand, as a result, working carers are in the group affected by the abolition of the 10 per cent. tax rate; further notes that most carers care for adults and are thus not entitled to child tax credits, nor do they qualify for working tax credits because they cannot work the requisite hours; believes that carers make an invaluable contribution to society; and urges the Government to take the opportunity when publishing its forthcoming National Strategy for Carers to help those carers made worse off as a result of last year’s budget.
+ Carer Watch Condemns the Abolition of the 10 per cent Tax Rate
April 21st, 2008
Carer Watch condemns the abolition of the 10p tax rate which will affect carers on low incomes, particularly those who work, pensioner carers and carers who have drawn down their occupational pensions. Carer Watch has difficulty understanding how doubling the rate of income tax to the poorest citizens from 10p in the pound to 20p fits in with the government’s stated intention to reduce poverty.
+ DWP SELECT COMMITTEE ENQUIRY INTO CARER STRATEGY
April 4th, 2008
Evidence to be submitted by 3rd April 2008
Carerwatch sent in a detailed and comprehensive submission based on the responses of members of carerwatch and carers from other forums across the Internet. The full submission will be available when the select committee reports.
+ A TRADE UNION FOR CARERS
April 3rd, 2008
2nd April 2008
Letter to the TUC
We think that the principle of a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work is a well established trade union principle. We are interested in the possibility of establishing a recognised trade union for carers to achieve our objectives, possibly as a separate branch within an appropriate existing TUC union.
Carerwatch Section - Financial Support for Working Age Carers
Thread - Should carers have their own trade union?
+ DIRECT ACTION
March 31st, 2008
Carerwatch are planning a series of Direct Action demos to raise the profile of carer issues.
Come and help.
Campaign Group
section - Campaigns
thread - Direct Action
+ CARERS LETTER
March 8th, 2008
Carerwatch came together around this letter which was sent out by carers last summer and received a lot of support.
Carers have heard from various politicians how much they value and appreciate the work and commitment of Carers. Carers are frustrated with battling with an unfair, uncaring system. Carers are fearful of the future. Carers do not feel valued or appreciated. This, and preceding governments, have not made a serious attempt to solve the problems that Carers experience every day.
The main problems being:
1) Poverty : Poverty caused by the appallingly low CA Benefit.
Carers struggle to pay their bills and feed and clothe themselves. This is entirely caused by the restrictions of the responsibility of being a Carer. i.e.: The level of Care they provide result in many being unable to work even part time.
2) Housing : Many Carers lose their homes because they are unable to meet the mortgage repayments when they give up work to become a Carer.
3) Respite Care : Carers work with out a break for months sometimes years on end because they cannot afford to pay for Respite Care, or it is just not available.
4) Over Lapping Benefit Rule : This rule ensures that Carers live on an inadequate income.
5) Health Care Costs : In spite of their appallingly low income Carers pay for Prescriptions, Dental Care and Eye Tests.
6) Pension : Carers Allowance is stopped at pension age. This causes immense hardship to pensioners, because as Carers they incur extra expenses.
Carers need emotional and physiological support in the form of Reliable Respite Care. So that like every other person on the planet they can come back to their work rested and refreshed. ( Even God rested on the seventh day!).
As more people become aware of the hardships that at automatically go with becoming a Carer; many may choose not to become a Carer. Consequently the full cost of that Social Care will fall upon society and the government. In the long term it would make more economic sense to adequately support Carers than it will to provide care for their Carees.
There are two options.
A) Pay Carers an amount that reflects their work load and commitment in keeping with the cost of living, so that they can support themselves financially. Plus Free Respite Care of 4-6 weeks per year. It is the only realistic way they can have a break. I don’t know of any other category of people who have to pay someone else to do their job while they have a break or take a holiday. To add insult to injury they have to pay more than they themselves receive for the same work.
1) A Substantial Increase in Carers Allowance
2) Make Carers Allowance a Non-Means Tested Benefit
3) Free Respite Care, prescriptions, dental and eye care, Free Adult Education.
4) Carers Allowance to continue after reaching Pension age.
5) Disregard all Carers Savings
6) A Non Means Tested Extra Payment (To cover Mortgage Repayments, heating, travel and transport costs).
Because of illness, the consequences of an accident or just infirmity and frailty of old age. Becoming a Carer can happen to anyone. It is a fact of life and it should be properly provided for.
A separate Tax and Lottery Fund would ease the burden on other services and finances that are at present paid for out of the UK’s general budget.
Every society is judged by how it treats it’s least fortunate amongst them
+ Finance
January 13th, 2008
Regarding finance just as with every other aspect of caring, different categories of Carers have different needs, much depends on their individual family circumstances. One thing they all have in common is that becoming a Carer has financial implications.
Whether you are a Carer trying to balance work and caring, or have had to give up work to become a full-time Carer, caring often has either a hidden, or an obvious impact, not only on today’s finances but also on a Carers future financial security.
Finding it difficult to balance working and caring many Carers are forced to reduce their working hours, consequently their income is reduced too. Along with a reduced wage goes reduced pension contributions.
Fulltime Carers of working age who’s caring roles are to demanding for them to work as well as care are financially even worse off.
Fulltime lone Carers, (that is Carers who have no financial back up income from another working adult) are worst off all.
Carers are caught in a benefit poverty trap.
Many Carers are denied a range of benefits because they own property, have savings or have drawn an early pension.
Although they are entitled to claim Carers Allowance of £48.65, (which the government quaintly terms a replacement wage) they will not be eligible to claim other benefits until their savings are virtually gone.
Many Carers are forced to sell their home because they are unable to meet the mortgage repayments. Carers who are denied benefits because they have assets, or savings, (or savings through the equity from the sale of their home) are in effect emotionally blackmailed into self-funding their caring role.
Apparently not satisfied that Carers are saving the government billions each year in care costs, by denying them access to further benefit’s the government are seemingly intent on subjecting Carers to what amounts to a financial mugging.
The Government should recognise that Carers are unique within the Benefit system, they are “doing” something for their Carers Allowance, not “being” something i.e. sick, unemployed or disabled.
Surely becoming a Carer should not mean an automatic descent into poverty? Carers who have worked, saved, bought property or paid into a pension should not have to sacrifice all they have worked for and their future financially security because they have made the decision to care for a member of their family, a friend or a neighbour.
Surely they deserve better financial help and support than they have at present?
+ cheryl
January 13th, 2008
This team space is currently managed by Cheryl