Shameless onslaught on carers

 

 

CarerWatch members are outraged having learned of the latest details in a briefing paper recently released by DWP, Personal Independence Payment and Carer’s Allowance, that will affect many carers. Details as confirmed by Esther McVey, Minister for Disabled People -

“Latest estimates project there will be a net reduction of 9,000 recipients of CA (where benefit is in payment) by the end of 2018 as a consequence of reassessment for PIP”

As the above will be the result of a person needing care having lost their Disability Living Allowance, the impact on family’s incomes will be immense. This double blow will especially hit hard those families on the poverty line.

Add to this the introduction of bedroom tax, cuts to local services; we feel this shameless onslaught from the government has shown a total disregard for the services provided by carers. Services estimated to be £119billion per annum

Our society would not function without the care currently provided by unpaid carers and the consistent refusal by Governments to improve Carers lives has ripple effects throughout Social Services and the NHS. Precious few people receive the actual support they need and so many carers are just not receiving vital services and support.

These cuts contradict findings in the Breakthrough Britain report, undertaken by The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), which was established as an independent think-tank by the Rt Hon Iain Duncan Smith MP, now the present Secretary of State for Works and Pensions.

It said –

“The low level of Carer’s Allowance discourages people from providing care to family members. It is one of the lowest forms of benefit available but it there is a high level of expectation in terms of work, in return”

Removing Carers Allowance from 9000 (projected no.) people will result in less families being able to provide care.

Therefore, we call on Iain Duncan Smith, Secretary of State for Works and Pensions, to look past his fantasy and wishful thinking for these welfare reforms, and look at the reality of what these cuts and reforms are actually doing to many people with disabilities/ill health and their carers.

 

South Tyneside Welfare Protest Meeting – Hardest Hit/PSA

Welfare Protest Meeting – South Shields

On Friday night I attended a meeting held in South Shields Town Hall, jointly held by local Public Services Alliance and Hardest Hit North East Group.  I would say approx 100-120 people attended. They consisted of local councillors, residents, representatives from various unions.

Chairing the meeting was Tina Roche (Unison), with speeches from Iain Malcom, Leader of the Council, David Miliband MP and Peter Bennetts, spokesperson for HH North East. All outlined the huge problems ahead. Tina ensured that more time was given for questions and statements from the floor.

Iain Malcom

Mr. Malcolm covered many issues that would affect our local area. Cuts to services, impact of welfare reform. He also spoke of proposed bedroom tax and abolition of council tax. Huge concerns re social care.

Mr Miliband

Mr. Miliband spoke about 3 warnings – Awareness, Protest and Preparation.

More work needs doing raising awareness of welfare benefit changes, as so many people are still unaware of what is in the pipeline ahead.

Protest – protest voices need to be heard and more grassroots groups, charities, unions need to work together. Protests, petitions, write to MPs outlining how changes are impacting on families.

Preparation – How we need prepare for the Tsunami of change, not just locally but nationally. People will need advice, support and information.

He spoke of the impact of welfare reform on families and the fear of them using loansharks.  A place for credit unions. Impact on local services. Of Alf Morris. Local housing issues.

Note

Comment was made from the floor by Stuart Bracking (DPAC North East) that there should be a 4^th point made, and that is Reflection.  Labour need look back on their policies; amend mistakes made, especially with the work capability assessment. I hope to have a statement from Stuart soon to add here.

Lady from floor said that Labour need to be a stronger opposition party, as this is not visible to people.

Peter Bennetts

Peter was excellent. He outlined many of the changes ahead re welfare benefits and held nothing back, describing the fear among disabled people regarding losing their independence.  He spoke of the Hardest Hit rallies already held and informed us of the next event to be held in Newcastle October 27^th. Also there will be HH members attending the A Future that Works protest Oct 20^th

Participating in the meeting meant I have only managed to note down some of the topics discussed, not all, but will hopefully give you an idea of the issues raised.

Bedroom tax was raised time and time again.

Disability Living Allowance to Personal Independence Payment

Loss of DLA could mean a double whammy for families if Carers Allowance is lost too.

Employment Support Allowance and Work capability Assessment not fit for purpose

Cuts to care services will bring added pressure on carers, many of whom are struggling now.

Those in low paid jobs and effect if lose their council tax benefit and need to find money to pay an increased charge.

Loss of Independent Living Fund

Loss of local jobs as council makes cuts

Impact of welfare reform on social care – NHS and social services departments will not be able to cope

Overall the meeting went very well. It was a great opportunity for local people to come together and realise they are not alone.

As a campaigner the biggest issue for me was Awareness. It was mentioned from the front table about how councils, and other bodies/organisations do not want to alarm people too soon about the changes. This was disputed from the floor. Marion, local resident, stood up and said people need informed now. It was waiting too long re welfare reform that meant too little time to fight.

Friday was the start of our local fight and arrangements already in place for further meetings.

Rosemary

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Please sign  PAT’S PETITION

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Interview with Chief Executive Carers Northumberland – GoodcauseTV

Video of interview with Sandi Downing, Chief Executive, Carers Northumberland

Watch here

For support and advice

Carers UK

Finding help where you live

Carers Trust

Online campaigners

CarerWatch discussion forum

Carers forum on Facebook

Northumberland Disability and Deaf Network

Last stages of the Legal Aid bill – time to stand up for access to justice

Guest post from

Natalie Sedacca - a member of Young Legal Aid Lawyers.

Carers, and those they care for, are facing a series of attacks by the Government, such as the closure of day centres, tightening of care criteria, and threats to carers’ grants. The already low level of benefits paid to carers is not helped by the Welfare Reform Act. The blog has already reported how this does nothing to alleviate financial hardship for family carers, and how the move from DisabilityLiving Allowance to a “personal independence payment” will impact carers as well as disabled people. In this context, access to specialist legal advice to challenge poor decisions about benefits is more vital than ever.

But this help is under threat if the Government gets its way on a law about to go before MPs. The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill sets out Government plans to make sweeping cuts, severely restricting free advice for many types of legal problem. The Bill has gone through Parliament and is now at its final stage, returning to be considered by the House of Commons after April 17th.

WHY have family carers been failed again?

For several years now CarerWatch, along with other campaigners, have fought for Carers’ benefits to be improved. However, past and present governments, have continuously failed to address both the low level of the allowance, £55.55 per week, or tackle the restrictions which bar many carers from claiming.

We have repeatedly taken our concerns to Ministers, DWP, MPs, all of which have been ignored. We were outraged with the present Welfare Reform Bill/Act, as once again carers’ benefits were overlooked.

This was frustrating as the current Secretary of State for Works and Pensions, Mr Iain Duncan Smith, had previously recommended an increase in the allowance when with the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), an independent think tank he set up.

In the report, Breakthrough Britain, it was stated –

 “”Family carers are undervalued in our society and receive a disproportionately low level of financial support given the many hours of work that they do“”

Considering we are witnessing the biggest reform of welfare benefits in over 60 years,

WHY have family carers been failed again?

Why, on March 14^th 2012, did Mr Paul Burstows answer a question from Mr Jim Cunningham and state:

 The Cross Government’s Carers Strategy “Recognised, valued and supported: Next steps for the Carers’ Strategy”, recognises that carers should not face financial hardship and the Departments are working together to take forward various initiatives to support carers in their caring role, through welfare reform and in developing the White Paper on care and support. We are looking at putting the rights of carers on a firmer footing in social care so that they have similar rights to the people they care for.

The WRB received Royal Assent March 8^th 2012 and there was NOTHING included that would alleviate the financial hardship being faced by many carers.

With a White paper due for care and support, can we be at all hopeful that the Dept of Health will succeed where other departments have failed. Time will tell.

A recent report from the Joint Committee on Human Rights  urges the Government to conduct an impact assessment on the cumulative impact of the current reforms on disabled people. It considers that this is required by law.

This mirrors exactly what is asked  for with Pat’s Petition – a pause to consider the impact of the ‘perfect storm’ of changes. Too many of these changes will impact on family carers and we urge everyone to sign Pats Petition, share with others.

Care reform must succeed where welfare reform failed

The Care Lobby is here. Full details on their website 

CareLobby 2012 are also staging the world’s first twobby – an online lobby so that even more people can tell MPs that a change in social care is urgently needed. This will run at the same time as the lobby at parliament. Our social care system is broken. Support the twobby TODAY

The program of welfare reform and cuts is proceeding with alarming momentum and the needs of carers  and  disabled people are being lost in the fiscal crisis.  

In this present economic climate we are already witnessing many cutbacks within Local Authorities:

• Care criteria being tightened
• Day centres closing
• Respite allocations reducing in many areas
• Meals on wheels costs increasing dramatically
• Care package costs increasing
• Transport for disabled people either stopping or priced out of reach
• Carers’ grants under threat

…………… and so the list could go on.

Add in the recent passage of the Welfare reform Bill which will see Disability Living Allowance become a Personal Independence Payment. Removing or reducing DLA will not only have an enormous financial impact on disabled people it will also impact on their carers – a double blow which will especially hit hard those families on the poverty line.

This is why we need a pause. To stop and assess how all these changes will impact on lives.

Sign Pats Petition here   Share the link and ask as many others to sign too, ask them to pass it on. Together we can do this.

Easy read consultation on the new Personal Independence Payment

The government’s ideas about the points you need to get benefit, and assessment questions.

Tell them what you think. Consultation ends 30 April 2012

Easy read docs here

Send responses to -

email to   pip.assessment@dwp.gsi.gov.uk      or

post a letter to

Dept of Work and pensions

2nd floor Area B

Caxton House

Tothill Street

London

SW1H 9NA 

 

DWP – structural reform plan

Monthly Implementation Update jan 2012

DWP srp-update-jan12

 

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Welfare Reform Bill – Vigils & Lobbies: 1pm-3pm, MONDAY 23 JAN

Received from Winvisible

 

Welfare Reform Bill — no going back to Dickensian days

Next Vigils & Lobbies: 1pm-3pm, MONDAY 23 JAN, WEDNESDAY 25 JAN, TUESDAY 31 JAN.

* Defend Child Benefit for all * Oppose all benefit caps and sanctions  
Cap greedy landlords, not low-income people!

 

called by

Single Mothers’ Self-Defence, WinVisible, Zacchaeus 2000 Trust

 

Meet opposite Parliament – Lords’ entrance

Old Palace Yard, Abingdon St SW1 – Westminster tube

All welcome

 

 

We have had two very successful vigils attended by over 30 people – people with disabilities, single mothers, claimants and other activists. The Royal College of Nursing joined the vigil last Tuesday. Alex Callaghan, who leads their policy work on the social determinants of health, had photos taken for Nursing Times. 

 

Legal aid bill goes into the Lords committee stage today – Dec 20th 2011

Guest post by Carita Thomas -  a member of Young Legal Aid Lawyers.

It’s Christmas, and I don’t know about you, but pennies are tight, and I’m only halfway down my shopping list! Austerity Britain is not much fun at the moment, and all this talk of “tightening belts” and “tough choices” is not creating much festive cheer. Then I read that the City is due to take home £4.2 billion in bonus cash this Christmas, instead of saving that to stave off another bailout from the state.

Helping the City through the credit crunch has meant bankers now cost us more than bin men, so a nice bonus on top of all that seems a bit wrong. We are going through the worst cuts of a generation – doesn’t everyone have to prove their value for money nowadays? I’m sure those bankers will get a firm talking to in 2012…. But for now the Government has other priorities.

This week its plans to reform legal aid are in the spotlight. Like so many public services, the Government wants to cut free legal advice back as far as it can, and on 20^th December, the bill containing the proposals will be debated by the committee of the House of Lords.

Now, some might ask why anyone would object to plans like these. The Government’s proposals for legal aid would save £350 million. Who can argue with that sort of money?

Well, that’s small change out of £4.2 billion. And I don’t believe these cuts will save money, at least not in the long term. Studies have shown that legal aid can save money for the state, with Citizens’ Advice estimating this could be up to £8.80 for every £1 spent.  Getting help with a problem in the early stages stops things snowballing, leading to more public costs later down the line, like paying for homeless assistance if someone gets evicted because they get into debt and stop paying rent. Let’s talk one year after the cuts and see how bright the plans look then, when more people have had to turn to the state without basic help to let them fix their own problems.

Also, where is the talk of alternatives? The Government has either been unlucky in a game of cuts roulette or deliberately chosen policies that home in on people who have most to lose. At the moment, 80% of those who use legal aid are in the poorest 20% of the population, and 650,000 people will lose help each year if the cuts go ahead. You can do the maths about who is coming off worst. This bill is a travesty as it takes away the right to equality of arms from the poorest, making them stand alone against opponents who can pay for help, not least the state, whose pockets are deepest of all.

The Government admits the bill will have a disproportionate impact on certain groups, and one of these is disabled people. Just take benefits advice, which the Government wants to cut completely. 58% of clients here are disabled – which means 78,000 disabled people will lose out each year in this one area of law. Other important changes include a plan to only allow debt advice if your home is at risk. And for both debt and community care you will have to call a telephone line to get help, with no guarantee you’ll see someone face to face. This comes just as local authorities have to make tough choices about what they spend money on so it will be harder to get basic advice if you think you are not getting the social care service you deserve.

With all the other government “reforms” we have seen rolled out, it’s not a pretty picture ….  Tanni Grey-Thompson got it right when she said welfare reform plus a lack of appropriate legal advice is a “double whammy” for disabled people.

If we go back to what is value for money, I’d say carers beat the bankers hands down. Care provided to family and friends saves the state an unbelievable £119 billion per year, which deserves more than just a pat on the back. Pat Onions said it best when she asked the Government to stand by its duty to disabled people and carers and review the cuts to benefits and services that will affect them.

There is a Christmas message for the coalition if ever I heard one – if you have not signed Pat’s petition already – do this today. (click here!)

People like Pat get my fighting spirit back. There is still loads we can do and lots of peers with principles who can be encouraged to stop the worst of the bill. If you want to take action against the cuts to legal aid, join the campaign.

You could take a seat in Scope’s “virtual parliament” or tell them your story about how legal aid helped you. Check out these websites for more ideas and information: Save Legal Aid, Justice For All and Sound Off for Justice.

You can still make a huge difference, so please get involved.