Green Paper Discussion (from 24th March, 2025)

@judie Thank you, and you’ve hit the nail on the head. This Liebour government’s Green Paper feels like it’s been written in some fantasy La la land, completely out of touch with the daily realities people like us face.

Until MSM are made to tell the truth as it and with proof , then I cannot trust any media , the world is such a mess and I could tell a few truths about what really goes on in a few countries as I have friends and family who live in the heart of what is reported on MSM and its very different to the news we have to rely on. So if I want news about certain events going on in a few countries right now then I prefer to watch the live video's from friends . For me this is the truth. And when you consider every single main media outlet is owned by four separate people , then you start seeing why you can flick from channel to channel , source to source and see the exact same rhetoric .

This is disgusting. We are paying for them to be taught fantasy rhetoric to attack us with! So angry

I hear income based ESA won't get touched if been on it a while but unsure about the ramifications when it comes to reassessment when it comes to when entitlement ends etc.. Maybe we all panic about what hasn't happened yet or whether it will over the next year and a half but I still worry about those brown envelopes arrive.

Thanks very much I'm unsure if I get lcwra, I find it overwhelming so all I can do is wait for the brown envelopes 😔

I'm wondering whether that would be legal/what kind of legislation would be necessary to enable it. But honestly, with DLA I never had an assessment, because it wasn't needed. They had all the evidence and they reached a conclusion and it was painless. Whereas PIP they had an assessment and all my evidence (I recorded my assessment but it bears little resemblance to either the assessment report or the decision letter). MR was even worse. Tribunal was hellish but they did actually review my evidence and so awarded me the same as the DLA had years before. All that expense to the tax payer which could have been avoided by just shifting me from DLA to PIP equivalent with a check that nothing had changed.

This is what I would rather see done. People not needing to go to MR or tribunal because the job is done right the first time around.

So many articles demonising neurodivergence of late. Some very hateful. There are also some articles claiming autistic people are least at risk, but this is garbage. Anyone with autism or ADHD who has claimed PIP has probably been through war to get it. There are countless people out there who tried but fell at the first hurdle because the assessment destroyed them :/

Every time a govt minister conflates PIP with ESA, I just want to scream. Understanding which benefit is which and what each one does is the baseline for trying to make changes. If you don't understand/want to understand the difference you shouldn't be 'amending' them, much less claiming it's moral. It's not moral to put 3.2 million people, mostly disabled people, into poverty.

Going to reiterate what I said before. Even if the questions on the consultation don't ask what you want to say, still fill it in. Add whatever you think they should know. They can refuse to ask but we should still take the opportunity to tell them :)

Dear [removed by moderator - personal information],

I acknowledge receipt of your communication concerning the Government’s proposed changes to disability and other benefits.


As you will be aware from the Secretary of State’s Statement recently we have yet to learn of the details of the proposed changes. We should, perhaps, take some comfort from the fact that the Government has made it clear that those with debilitating long-term conditions should not have their benefits affected adversely and that those benefits may possibly be enhanced.


Do feel free to contact me again once the details have been confirmed and published.  Also, if I can assist you personally, please do let me know.


With my best wishes,

Yours sincerely,

ROGER

From:

 

 

<>




Sent:

 Friday, April 4, 2025 5:32 PM




To:

 GALE, Roger

 

<GALERJ@parliament.uk>




Subject:

 I’m worried about benefit cuts

 

Dear Sir Roger,







The fear and anxiety is through the roof I broke down twice now in engaging with DWP personnel how many more have and what effect has this caused on health? I’m writing to you as a constituent in Herne Bay and Sandwich to ask you to call on the Prime Minister to protect our social security system for people with mental health problems.







Our social security system should support everyone - especially those who need it most. But the announcement of £4.8bn in cuts to social security for disabled people is terrifying for people with mental health problems. The government’s own impact assessment estimates that these plans will push a further 250,000 people into poverty. Other estimates are already showing these figures will actually be even higher. And some of the most damaging changes aren’t even being included in the government consultation, which means those of us with real experience of mental health problems aren’t getting a say.







People with mental health problems already struggle to access the support they need through our current benefits system. Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is supposed to help people cover the extra costs associated with their disability. Research has clearly demonstrated that life costs more for people with mental health problems. PIP is designed to help people to live more independent lives, and sometimes support them to overcome barriers to work. It enables people with mental health problems to pay for support like taxi fares when public transport feels impossible, help with chores due to fatigue, or higher food costs due to difficulties making food from scratch. Further restricting access to PIP will only make it harder for people to get the support they need. 







On top of this, the cuts to health-related payments from Universal Credit (UC) will only push more people with mental health problems into poverty. This could lead to a cycle of people being unable to pay for their basic needs and their mental health getting worse as a result.







The UK government has said that these changes are needed because the benefits system is broken, and they want to help people get into work. People with mental health problems who’ve tried to get support know that the system is broken better than most. But harsh cuts to support is not the answer. This will make it harder for people to get into work and will only make the system more broken.







Meanwhile, there are currently 1.6 million people on mental health waiting lists. Many of those people rely on the social security system as their safety net. The wait for treatment is worsening their mental health, increasing physical health problems, and deepening financial stress. Many people find themselves losing their jobs while waiting for support.  







Cuts like these are also likely to mean higher costs for the government in the long run. Even though the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) forecasts direct savings, it doesn’t consider the wider impact of these measures. Pushing more people receiving benefits into poverty will likely increase costs for other public services like the NHS, social care, children’s services, and housing services too.




Will you write to the Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, today and call on him to urgently stop these harmful cuts to support for disabled people and people with mental health problems? The UK government must:







- Urgently stop plans to restrict access to PIP







- Urgently stop plans to cut the rate of the health element of UC







- Ensure the health element of UC continues to grow at least in line with inflation







The mental health charity, Mind, will be sending you a briefing with more detail on the points above. You may find this helpful when writing to the Prime Minister. Thank you for taking the time to read my email. I look forward to your response.







Kind regards,




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Yep the old Deserving/undeserving argument

I suspect that is government speak like when they say you would be better off on benefits while in work.

Oh, they will make plenty of money from this reform don't you worry about that. It will be in the 100s of billions over the course of the next few decades because they are reforming this for future claimants also not just the people who are on it now.

They will make so much money that they will have enough to pass around as toilet paper in their government parties. They will be laughing and enjoying going to concerts and holidays, eating in nice restaurants, going to events, dancing and partying, and making more and more money while we will be suffering and worrying everyday about money. We won't let it happen. They can not get away with it.