Green Paper Related Discussions
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I know it’s so tiring but you’ve got that over with now . Have a rest and take care of yourself as it’s so draining.
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Brilliant , thanks for sharing Johnny
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How many more Jodey Whitings will the DWP kill before it’s stopped?
As a coroner rules her death was caused by benefits cuts, the DWP plan to kill many more disabled people
Yesterday, after eight long years, a coroner ruled that Jodey Whiting’s death was the result of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) stopping her disability benefits.
Jodey Whiting: the DWP killed her
In late 2016, 42-year-old mother of nine Jodey Whiting missed a letter informing her the DWP needed to reassess her for Employment Support Allowance, which subsequently meant she missed the appointment. The reason for missing this was that she had contracted pneumonia and whilst in hospital the doctors had found a cyst on her brain.
On 6 February 2017 she received a letter telling her the DWP had found her “fit for work” despite never completing the assessment.
Just 15 days later she was found dead in her home surrounded by prescription drugs and handwritten notes about struggling to pay her bills and affording food. One simply read:
I’ve had enough.
Jodey lived with mental and physical conditions and was housebound as a result. Jodey didn’t just lose ESA that day, she also lost her housing and council tax benefits. In her suicide notes she wrote desperately about how she’d tried to find ways to pay her rent and bills.
Inquest after inquest
Jodey’s mother Joy Dove has campaigned tirelessly for the last eight years to ensure that the DWP was held accountable. In the initial inquest, Jodey losing her benefits wasn’t even mentioned as the reason she died by suicide. That inquest lasted just 37 minutes. As a result of Joy’s tireless campaign a second inquest was held.
Joy told the inquest
I know my daughter and I know it was that. It was the fact she couldn’t find a job, the worry of paying bills and being pushed out after being so vulnerable all those years.
An independent report found that Jodey’s benefits should not have been stopped – but that came far too late.
Helga Swidenbank, a director at the DWP who did not work there in 2017, said that opportunities to identify Jodey’s vulnerable state were missed (presumably because they didn’t actually speak to her).
Swidenbank told the inquest:
I understand that there is a culture shift from being process-driven to being much more compassionate.
Whitewashing the reality
The coroner concluded that Jodey’s death was down to the DWP stopping her benefits. However, she worryingly said that she’d heard enough about supposed changes within the DWP to not recommend any wider action be taken.
Unfortunately, no matter how sorry and changing their ways the DWP claim to be, the truth is they are still putting disabled people’s lives at risk. Even more so now with proposed benefits cuts.
Jodey’s case feels extremely pertinent given what is happening at the moment with DWP benefits cuts. If the proposed changes go ahead, how many more disabled people will be forced to turn to suicide due to not being able to afford to live?
Cuts kill
The proposed cuts would see nine in 10 claimants losing parts of their PIP in some areas, and many Universal Credit claimants struggle when their benefit is slashed or frozen at below inflation. With the new “health element” assessment being moved from Universal credit to PIP it would see what the Taking The PIP campaign called “a domino effect of financial ruin”.
Over 3.2 million disabled people would see their benefits cut with over 700,000 families be forced deeper into poverty. An untold amount of people will end up in the same situation as Jodey, punished by a system that is supposed to protect them, unable to feed themselves or pay their rent until their only option is death.
The cruellest thing about this though is the fact that the government and especially those in top jobs at the DWP are well aware of the disastrous effects the inhumane system can have.
Whilst the DWP is happy to act like Jodey’s case is an isolated incident, they – and especially disability minister Stephen Timms – know this isn’t true- because they fought to uncover the truth.
Labour ministers know the DWP is deadly
Timms, the current minister for disabled people, was formerly chair of the Work and Pensions Select Committee. A big part of this role was putting pressure on successive Tory ministers to release reports into safeguarding and the true scale of DWP benefits deaths.
Timms continuously in particular dragged Therese Coffey over the coals on her insistence that the department does not have a duty to safeguarding vulnerable claimants.
The Labour government like to make a big show of being different to the Conservatives. However, the only difference many are seeing is how unashamedly cruel they are. The Tories at least had the decency to be a bit cloak and dagger about it.
The government will no doubt be crowing about the fact that the mainstream media are reporting en masse that the coroner declared the DWP is making changes to the system. It’s our job now at the Canary to show that these are not positive changes.
Fight back
In the coming weeks the bill announcing the DWP cuts will be introduced to parliament. MPs will vote on whether to make these devastating cuts a reality. I implore you to join us and take action
Email your MP if you haven’t already. Taking The PIP has a handy tool to do it quickly and easily. Sign petitions and make some noise on social media. Tag your MPs and tell them what the cuts would mean to you.
This weekend thousands are expected to descend on London in the People’s Assembly demo. But if you can’t make that Disability Rebellion are holding one online too.
The DWP cuts could force so many more into the same devastating decision as Jodey and the government know this – they must be stopped.
https://www.thecanary.co/opinion/2025/06/04/jodey-whiting-dwp/
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It's worth quoting some extracts from this heartbreaking report when filling in some of the dafter questions in the Green Paper consultation that still has three weeks to run. You know the ones. The questions that mention "welcome" and "conversations".
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In last few days my mental health support worker has referred me to the emergency crisis team as I'm not coping with all the turmoil this dangling a carrot everyday and giving us nothing I have complex PTSD and other disabilities so wrong that a government can do this to us everyday for months 😡
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Thankyou for sharing was losing hope
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This is terrible that the government has done this to you . Hopefully we will win and we can all have some peace . Hopefully you feel better soon x
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Thank you, I've have worse stuff done to me than this government can ever do, but is just cruel and personal to us all .
Hopefully they will leave us alone
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Her mum fought so hard and had just lost another daughter not to dwp and a grandson God love her ❤️ yes sent to my mp and most on lost who voting for cuts time to fight them no more no way !!!!
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I understand I'm the same I can feel the rage it consume me I hope you get to see someone soon evil it is evil
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Ah I've had enough brought me to tears god we all know how she was feeling and many of hundreds with no names RIEP make no mistake we are fighting fir our lives send every article that comes up to mps not just your own we have to change the system we have to demand and say enough is enough no more no more
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God bless you Catherine
I read your posts every day and they give me a lot of reasons to keep on fighting.
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How can I actually get to the page where I can fill in my answers. I can't find it and am going round in circles.
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yes it's nice to curl up in bed, my favourite place as i guess is same for many. A place to escape in dreams from daily stuff.
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Bed is the best place ever. No pain in my back when I lay on my side ..I ofen shut the blinds and just sleep for hours .
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I fear after Christmas it's going to a be a awful time . Anxiety of the pending changes will be getting closer.There not a day goes by I don't think of what's to come. Sometimes positive but other times a feeling of deep fear comes over me . I had dreams of being told all monies stop and I left with pain trying to do a job I can't do.
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I'll. Thanks.
By the way, an hour or so ago, I wrote a nasty email, though polite, to all the ones who are supporting the cuts. I mean those captured by this screenshot, which you've posted on a separate thread of yours.
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Many thanks.
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Sorry if I've missed it linked earlier but where is this list from please?
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