Posts Tagged ‘iain duncan smith’

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We stand united together and will grow and grow

Sunday, April 7th, 2013

As a gardener I am always looking for new ideas to add to my garden. Inspiration comes in all shapes and sizes. Like most of us who enjoy plants and trees – each new addition means a little less lawn to cut as we find a space for our latest acquisition.

Up here in Scotland we have some beautiful natural stone. Most of it huge and attached to a mountain but my garden has its own fair share.

Granite is plentiful in many areas. As such it is used a lot in buildings as it is one of the hardest stones known to man. And woman who digs it out of her garden!

 

cairn

A cairn is often used to mark the tops of mountains – people who reach the summit can add a stone. They are also used to mark paths keeping travellers safely away from the dangers of the edges. The lasting durability of the stone cairn is a symbol to those that follow behind.

 

So the idea of building a cairn in the garden was born.and it will represent those 62,709 people who signed Pat’s Petition before it closed.

I laid the first stone and it will be added to as and when weather, time and availability of gathered stones allow.

 

cairn laying 1st stone 2

I don’t think I can count 62,709 but will use one stone per 100 signatures. The strength and hardness of these stones represent us all – disabled people, carers and their families.

 

PP closed 4 months ago but we are still inundated with requests from people wanting to add their support. To this end a space has been created here. New stones will continue to be added to the cairn as these numbers increase.

Like the cairn which won’t crumble into the soil – we stand united together and will grow and grow.
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There are still some important petitions open on the government website.

 

WowPetition  sign here   – further details of the campaign group here

 

Stop the Abolition of Disability Living Allowance for Personal Independence Payments  – sign here

 

 

 

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Posted in Pat's Debate, Pat's Petition | 1 Comment »

This is just the end of the beginning – Welfare Reform

Monday, April 1st, 2013

Iain D Smith

The government is bringing in so many cuts that a Cumulative Impact Assessment is far too difficult

April Fool – it’s actually really very simple 

 

At last more and more people are waking up to the realisation of the horrors lying in wait for disabled people, their carers and families. At last there are debates in Parliament with dozens of MPs relating true stories from their constituents. They all tell the same story. How disabled people, those with serious illness, and carers are being hit the hardest.

And this is just the end of the beginning.

Six more drastic cuts come on line today.

It is the perfect storm

That’s why I’m so proud of Pat’s Petition and what we achieved together.Pat’s Petition asked the government to “stop and look at the way all these changes would add up and impact on the lives of disabled people and their carers.” 62,709 people signed in the year that was open to us.

But the government refused. They say it is too difficult. You can read their response on Pat’s Petition here . They are conducting one enormous social experiment and leaving it for history to tell them what they did to us.

How can they get away with this?

Well – they can’t get away with it. We won’t let them. And neither will you.

The government are pretending that it is amazingly complicated when we are asking for something that is really simple. We are asking for an assessment of the impact on individual disabled people. There is no reason why they can’t run example cases through all the benefit changes one by one and show us, and the voters, exactly what they are doing to individual disabled people.

Scope/Demos  have released research on these changes. And it isn’t as impossibly difficult as the government maintain.

We aren’t going anywhere until the government face up to their responsibilities and produce a projection of what their policies are, and will be doing, to disabled people and their carers.

Pat’s team is working with many other campaign groups and we are meeting with government statisticians to discuss how they can carry out a Cumulative Impact Assessment.

The WOW petition is still active and you can sign that here. Their number of supporters is growing daily. Please share this petition as wide as possible asking others to sign and share too.  You will note they have had a preliminary response in which again the government states -

“Cumulative impact analysis is not being withheld – it is very difficult to do accurately and external organisations have not produced this either.”

This is NOT acceptable.

We still receive many emails and requests from people wanting to support this campaign. To this end a space has been created here to add your support, comments can be added too.

This Cumulative Impact Assessment

is going to happen

 

 

 

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Posted in Pat's Petition, welfare reform | 4 Comments »

TeamPP heads to London tomorrow to meet with Liam Byrne

Tuesday, February 5th, 2013

Pats Banner

 

Early  Wednesday afternoon Feb 6th, will see 5 of us meeting with Liam Byrne in London. 4 of us from PP with the 5th member from VIA Scotland – she will ensure Pat arrives safely and in a timely manner.

We are backed by others who can’t make the journey, and our memories of our friend who died just as we reached the petition end.

It is incredible to think that although PP has worked together for 18 months, and in a larger on line group before that, most of us have never been able to meet each other. We will spend a few hours together then leave for our respective homes spread many hundreds of miles apart.
We will have with us printed statements of your support, your real life stories, over 62,700 signatures and many questions to be answered. We have prepared as much as we can for what will undoubtedly be an interesting meeting with Liam.

Can we ask you to pledge your tweets tomorrow to this meeting. Hashtag  #TeamPP , especially from 2pm onwards when the meeting starts.

This is to represent not just those attending this meeting,

but each and every supporter/signature/group/charity.

 

This list below is not complete, please accept apologies if we have not as yet added your name or that of groups/organisations you belong to. It will be updated over next few days.

 

 

(more…)

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Posted in Pat's Debate, Pat's Petition | 5 Comments »

Frankly Lord Freud, your Party don’t give a damn

Friday, January 18th, 2013

 

Yesterday was a busy day for most campaigners. Here at PP it was no different.

From WCA debates, evidence sessions relating to Draft Care and Support Bill, release of 2 reports, one from an alliance of groups, and one from The Centre for Welfare Reform. see notes below

dont give a damn

However, in this post we would like to share details of another debate that took place in the House of Lords, a motion presented by Baroness Hollis about the impact on families of changes to tax and benefits . You can see transcript here and also Impact on families  PDF here.

This was a quiet debate but contributors spoke with such feeling and passion as they stressed how cuts were disproportionately hitting poor families, working families, children, disabled people, and also carers.

One exchange with Lord Freud needs special reference though.  (We have highlighted it below but please read his full response on the Hansard link above)

Lord Freud

The noble Baroness, Lady Hollis, raised a question about cumulative impacts, and I was fascinated by her sums on this. However, I need to point out that this Government publish impacts of benefit and tax changes alongside each Budget and Autumn Statement. That is something that previous Governments did not do.

 

Baroness Hollis of Heigham:

 

Is the Minister acknowledging that the Government have not published a cumulative analysis of the cuts, benefits and tax changes since 2010? If he is so doing, which I think is what he has said, it is still done slice by slice. Can we hope that he will do so-will he give a commitment to do so in future?

 

 
Lord Freud: My Lords, it is bluntly impossible to do a total cumulative assessment. I have looked at doing it, and you do not know what to put in and what to leave out. No one has done it in the past; it is not possible. Doing it year by year, as we do, is the best we can do-and it gives a fair view of what happens in a particular year.

 

In her closing speech Baroness Hollis replied -

 

The noble Lord, Lord Freud, referred to cumulative assessment. With the help of Citizens Advice and Landman Economics, we were able to work out pretty precisely-to within 10p or so-the total cumulative effect, since 2010, of the benefit cuts and tax changes. I did it for one family type-the security guard with a wife and two children. If we can do it over a weekend with wet towels and half a bottle of gin, I am quite sure that the Government can do it with the numbers of staff that they have in the Treasury. The answer is that the Government are not choosing to do it. They do not want to be shamed by us and others as to the effect of what they have done over time. There cannot be any other reason why the noble Lord, of all people, who has the utmost respect from the House for his integrity on these issues, and the Government continue to duck the consequences of their action by giving us the cumulative statistics today.

 

We applaud Baroness Hollis for securing this debate, and pressing the need for a Cumulative Impact Assessment.  As for Lord Freud, we have a message for him.

Saying something is “bluntly impossible”  is –

“BLUNTLY NOT ACCEPTABLE“ to us

For the health, wellbeing and safety of people in this country, it is vital a full cumulative impact assessment is carried out.

                        We ask as many people/groups join with us

and demand the Coalition government 

make a committment to this.

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Many people/groups reading this have been with us from the beginning, others join in daily as awareness grows, of these callous policies from the Coalition government and the impact they will have on many families.

YOUR help is needed again.

 

Contact your MP, details here.

Write and ask them to press David Cameron for a full Cumulative Impact Assessment to be undertaken,  of how ALL these changes, at the same time, are wrong.

Contact Lord Freud – tell him how you are being affected by the changes to benefits and services.  freudd@parliament.uk

Pat

and all at PP

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NOTES

Work Capability Assessment  -  Hansard transcript here

watch live here    frwd to 2 hrs 18 mins

The Centre for Welfare reform -         A Fair Society report

Draft care and Support Bill    Wednesday Jan 16th watch here

Thurs  Jan 17th   watch here

The Other Care Crisis -                    full report here
 

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Posted in Pat's Debate, Pat's Petition, social care, welfare reform | 4 Comments »

And still they lie ………….

Wednesday, January 9th, 2013

Yesterday’s viewing of the UK government debating the benefits uprating bill was horrendous for disabled people, their carers and families.

Attending Newcastles protest

We were aware of what was happening: we’ve been campaigning for long enough. We knew the facts – that a 1% rise in benefits is a real terms cut for people who are struggling and we are disappointed that our government would even consider it.

But it still comes as a shock to see those MPs stand up and weave their lies. George Osborne and his fellow Tories (and some LibDems) have repeatedly said that benefits for disabled people are protected. This is a lie.

We will not be disheartened though. The tide is turning as more and more people realise that this government is out to get them too. That the protections offered to people who cannot support themselves are being whisked away and that there is no safety net for those when they need it.

 

 

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George Osborne lied – Benefits for disabled people are NOT protected

Monday, January 7th, 2013

 

Pat’s Petition and supporters have always pointed out that disabled people, their carers and families are hit the hardest by every cut and change that this government makes.

George Osborne

The latest Welfare Uprating Bill is yet another example. Disabled people and their families often have no choice but to rely on benefits and George Osborne, in his assertion that their benefits would be protected, recognises this.

But he lied.

Employment Support Allowance is the main benefit for disabled people (alongside Disability Living Allowance), yet ESA will not be protected. ESA was not included in his list of protected benefits.

George Osborne lied.

We recommend reading this link for a clear explanation

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Parliamentary business for Tuesday 8 January 2013

Legislation

Welfare Benefits Up-rating Bill – Second reading.

You can watch live here from 12.30 pm.

Those participating on twitter can use  #WelfareBenefits  and/or #UpratingsBill.

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Posted in Pat's Debate, Pat's Petition, welfare reform | 12 Comments »

All Pat wants for Christmas is …..

Monday, November 19th, 2012

 

YOUR continuing support in calling for a Cumulative Impact Assessment regarding changes to benefits and services

Thank you to all our supporters. It feels like such a long time ago now that the petition finished, but it is only three weeks. In that time you haven’t heard much from us, but believe me, we’ve been busy.

We may not have reached the magic 100,000 signatures needed to trigger a potential debate – but that’s just a number.

 When did a little thing like that stop us?

We have written to Liam Byrne and Ed Miliband (see copy here), asking that they request a debate in parliament regarding a Cumulative Impact Assessment. This is within their powers and we hope they act promptly.

Please can you e-mail Liam and tell him how much this means to you and how strongly you feel about this.  ( byrnel@parliament.uk )

It would also help if you could write to your own MP. (To find your MP insert your postcode here)

Tell them that you want a debate, put the pressure on them to secure a date. And at the same time, raise their awareness of what these changes mean for us. When it gets to a debate, we’ll need to make sure all MPs know the true impact for their constituents. Let’s face it, their surgeries are going to be filled with people once the full effect of these changes hit.

We know that. Let’s make sure they do.

It may be that you fear losing Housing benefit or Disability Living Allowance.

It could be that you worry about losing services from social care, or that you have lost a valued member of staff in the NHS changes.

You might be in the middle of an appeal for Employment Support Allowance or have just received a dreaded brown envelope.

Whatever it is, tell them in your own words. It doesn’t have to be long, but the passion and truth of your real story could make a difference for all of us.

 Please do it today

We have such a wide range of people supporting us now that we really hope with your help that Liam will give us this debate.

So please, let us know which MP you contact, several ways to do this listed below. Send us all the feedback you get from your MP so that they can be involved when the debate happens.

Add to pp facebook page here. www.facebook.com/patsepetition

Email info to patspetition@googlemail.com

Tweet to @patspetition , also use hashtag #patspetition

Add in comments below

 Together we can do this

 

Pat

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Please share on facebook and twitter

 

 

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Posted in Pat's Petition, welfare reform | 10 Comments »

We need a Cumulative Impact Assessment. How many warnings will the government ignore?

Monday, October 29th, 2012

 

How many people have to emphasise the need for a cumulative impact assessment of the changes impacting on disabled people and carers?

As well as all the signatories to Pat’s Petition, the Joint Committee on Human Rights, the Equality and Human Rights Commission, Hardest Hit, and Demos –  Anne Begg MP has now asked Esther McVey, (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Department for Work and Pensions),

“will she consider a cumulative impact assessment of all the benefits affecting disabled people?”

describing the lack of an assessment as ‘inexcusable’.

Disabled people know themselves of the impact on their lives of all these changes at once.

How many warnings can the government ignore before this perfect storm becomes a disaster of epic proportions?

Please sign Pat’s petition. check junk box for activation email and then share, share, share.

http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/20968

Time is running out. We have 4 days left

 

JCHR link

ECHR link

Hardest hit – The Tipping Point

Demos

Working-Age Disabled People  25th October Westminster Hall  - Hansard here  2 pages

 

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Posted in Pat's Petition, welfare reform | 2 Comments »

The Prime Minister understands disability for the rich – but not for the poor

Friday, October 12th, 2012

Mr Cameron in his conference speech claimed to understand disability from his own family experience. He cried at the point in his speech where he mentioned his disabled son Ivan who died. It was very moving. He also made a big point about his disabled father.

So the question is – does David Cameron understand about disability from his own family experience as he claims.?

And the answer is – he has experience of disability in the family as a rich person.

But he understands nothing about disability if you have nothing and are up against the state – as your only source of income.

Absolutely nothing.

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Disability References In David Cameron’s #cpc12 Speech

Call Time on This Wretched Government and Its Assault on the Disabled – Andy Worthington

What 26k  Feb 2012

 George Osborne seals deal for £10bn welfare cuts

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Please sign the petition here, check for activation email, and then share asking others to do the same.

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The onslaught continues – sign Pat’s Petition

Monday, October 8th, 2012

Sign Pat’s petition here.  

Conservative conference is underway and by the hour we are hearing statements and interviews from government ministers regarding welfare reform and cuts. See links below

 It is even more vital now that we have all these issues debated in parliament.

Will Pat’s Petition achieve 100,000 by Nov 1st? We believe it will if we all push it forward as wide as possible.

The petition has reached over 50,000 signatures – quite incredible for this small group of unfunded friends with no large organisations behind them. But we need to reach 100,000 by the deadline at the end of the month.

As Pat says -  “That can sound quite daunting, but other petitions have done it. Anne Williams last year got 40,000 signatures on the very last day for her petition about her son Kevin who died at Hillsborough. Richard Branson had his support within a week. And the cuddly badgers achieved their target in weeks. If only people would support disabled people in the same way.”

 

link to Youtube video, click here -       Pat’s Petition

 

The group are asking people to be quick about taking actions:

Sign the petition at   http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/20968

Check junk boxes for activation emails.

Share the petition link by e-newsletters, facebook, twitter – get to places where people are already online

Add to blogs, write letters to media and your MP

If you are attending A Future that Works Oct 20th march ensure the petition details are shared with fellow marchers

Grassroots groups have been extremely supportive and we ask you to give this a final push.

Campaign teams from charities to come on board and raise awareness to your memberships. Time is running out so you need do this quickly.

 

WE ARE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER

 

Links

1. David Cameron on Andrew Marr show

Q: Nick Clegg said there would be more austerity after 2015. Was he right?

Yes, says Cameron. The cuts will have to be decided before the election. The government will have to look at things like welfare

2. Iain Duncan Smith Guardian 19.26 pm

“This quote is from 19:26 Sunday -

“A delegate asks Duncan Smith if he could cut more from the welfare budget, saying that would be very popular with the public.

IDS says he’s cut more than any other secretary of state – £18bn – but these are “difficult” times.

Once he has reformed welfare, everyone will be able to recognise that those who are on benefits are genuine claimants, he says, and not scroungers.”

3. George Osborne plans to cut another £10bn from welfare budget

FOR FURTHER DETAILS OR IF YOU HAVE ANY IDEAS ON HOW TO HELP PLEASE CONTACT PAT – patspetition@gmail.com

 

 

 

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Posted in care crisis, pat's list, Pat's Petition, social care, welfare reform | 1 Comment »

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