A despicable and disgusting government

I am not going to put my own opinions here today on the Welfare Reform Bill, but am going to quote from a wide ranging group of organisations who attended the lobby of parliament on Tuesday last organised by the PCS trade union. I agree with what they say and attended the lobby in solidarity. Ann Gray spoke for the Green Party and her speech can be found here http://greenleftblog.blogspot.com/2009/03/pcs-welfare-reform-bill-lobby-march.html Many of the speakers pointed out that it was the mark of a civilised society how it treats its poorest and most vulnerable members. On that score New Labour scores a solid 'null points'. I decided not to lobby my MP, the so-called 'Minister for Fairness' Harriet Harman. As a loyal member of the Cabinet she will troop into the lobby to support this Bill. As one PCS campaigner commented to me; "I wonder what her concept of fairness is?"

Mark Serwotka (General Sec of PCS) Jobseeker’s Allowance of £60 per week is only 60% of the average social security payment in the EU. Instead of listening to the investment banker David Freud, the government should listen to the Rowntree Foundation, whose research has demonstrated that 54% of those living in poverty have a working parent in the house. The private companies asked for 20% of the money up front before they even started with the job finding programme, then they increased it to 40% as they realised that it would be much more difficult than they first thought to place job seekers. PCS independent research has indicated that only 6% of the public support the private sector running the welfare system.

Jackie Robertson (UNISON National Disability Committee) We are opposed to welfare being used for privatisation and marketisation as an experiment. The motto of the government for disabled people should be to make work accessible. Disabled people don’t want to live on benefits but they don’t want this scheme either.

Tony Woodley (General Sec of UNITE) Unemployed workers have paid into the welfare system and deserve to get something back. The unions opposed these changes under Thatcher and will oppose them now. What we are seeing is the stick for the poor and a factory load of carrots for the fat cats.

John Mc Donnell MP We are putting forward a series of amendments to this Bill. We are witnessing the twin obsessions of New Labour – punishing the poor and privatisation. The unemployment figures which are announced are inaccurate and are regularly updates within two weeks, this is because Job Centre staff cannot keep up with the increases. There should not be profits at the expense of benefit savings. This is neoliberal ideology pure and simple. Support the long term unemployed and do not punish them. We will monitor the votes of MPs in constituencies and if they vote for this Bill, we will come for them.

Sarah Carr (Child Poverty Action Group) There is nothing in this Bill regarding an adequate income. This has the effect of removing Income Support from lone parents and mortgage interest is limited to two years. There is an ideological obsession with punishing lone parents. Research commissioned by the DWP indicates these measures are unlikely to change behaviour but will increase poverty. The government has stated that universal childcare will not be available until 2015 but what is to happen in the interim?

John Mason MP (SNP) I have just come from the Committee meeting where they are voting on the amendments. The 9 Labour MPs are voting down all the amendments and the Tories are abstaining, only the Lib Dem MP and I are trying to support the amendments. They have formed a united front. The Tories are claiming that the Bill originates with them. We have been defeated on an amendment to include a person’s basic income before taking punitive measures.

GMB Deputy General Secretary Labour don’t deserve to be re-elected. 2500 former Remploy workers are now working in ASDA or because of disability blocked from employment. Support for the private sector’s control of welfare means profits only before anything else.
Katie Clarke MP (Labour) There has been more privatisation under Labour than in the 18 years of Tory rule. The ideological stranglehold of New Labour on the Labour Party must be broken.

Release (Organisation assisting drug addicts) Drug addicts need support and not punishment. This Bill will lead to enforced punishment by the DWP. This already happens under the criminal justice system – there is no analysis of how successful it is and it is very expensive. These addicts will be forced on to a ‘Treatment Programme’ by the Job Centres and this will be known to landlords and others.

General Sec of UCU (Lecturers Union) Sending thousands of poor people into the arms of private advisors may encourage debt as these companies will have a vested interest in those people taking out loans.

National Association of Probation Officers There is currently a case load of about 240,000 and one third of these are due to drug and alcohol related offences. Many of these have a reading age of 11 or less and may have mental health problems and chaotic lives. If forced to attend interviews for their benefits the conflict with staff will increase dramatically. Instead there should be a gradual and supportive path to returning to work and not the punitive regime of this Bill.

Single Parent Action Network We oppose moves to force single parents on to JSA. People who do not understand the system will be punished most. Older children will be left at home on dangerous council estates. A ‘Work Related Activist Programme’ already existed and was popular. We confronted David Freud (the architect of the new Bill) with evidence based research that voluntary schemes were more successful. His reply was – no comment.

National Unemployed Workers Centres More and more people are applying to the centres. The campaign to raise benefit levels has fallen on deaf ears for years. Now there is more understanding as more people find themselves on the dole. The Employment Minister, Mc Nulty, was recently asked by the Sun if he could live on £60 per week and he replied that he could not. Things are bad when the Sun is more aware than this government. We need to draw up a new blueprint for a welfare state and not just be reactive.

Frances O’Grady (Deputy Gen Sec TUC) Thousands of workers are frightened and facing redundancy. Nick Clegg was incredibly facile for stating that unemployment was an opportunity to reinvent oneself. The real scroungers are the tax dodgers. Putting the private sector in charge of the unemployed is like putting Frank Goodwin in charge of a bank. David Freud said that bankers act like lemmings and then the market implodes – this will happen to the job market. Putting money into the hands of the poor is the most effective financial stimulus.

Fire Brigades Union Who do the public want brought to book the speculators or the unemployed? The answer is obvious.

A lone parent activist Why, after all we have heard, are the unions still supporting the Labour Party and this despicable and disgusting government?

Mark Serwotka (PCS) We don’t and our campaign fund is independent and for the support of our members. We must take this campaign beyond parliament and into every town and community in the land. The poor cannot be ground down like this. Every MP will hear our voice.