I introduce: The new Minister NOT for Disabilities. RIP Alf Morris
“Aha! We have the first jewelled utterances from the new Disability Minister, Mike Penning. Except he isn’t called the Minister for Disabled People any more. In the Daily Mail of course. Where else?” Sue Marsh isn’t impressed with the new Minister for Work and Pensions, Mike Penning.
Shouldn’t “Policy Exchange” be honest? “Propaganda Exchange” is more accurate
“I’m SICK of half truths and misleading sentences. Sick of cherry picked data that uses random figures to paint false pictures. Sick of assumptions about the labour market and fraud that just aren’t true.” Sue Marsh takes aim at a new report from Policy Exchange.
Hoban meeting update
“So, yesterday, as most of you will know by now, representatives from Spartacus finally got to meet with Mark Hoban to discuss Employment and Support Allowance and Work Capability Assessments after almost a year of trying.” Sue Marsh provides an update on Spartacus’ meeting with Work and Pensions Minister Mark Hoban.
Labour need to re-define what it means to be “Working Class”. And quick
“By living under the shadows of 80s past, of militant and strikes, we have become terrified of identifying with anyone at all. It’s ludicrous. We speak for the worker. ALL of the workers.” Sue Marsh challenges the Labour Party to stand up for ordinary working people.
Help me beat the Daily Mail
Victory!!! OK, it took 18 months and a lot of energy from Child Poverty Action Group, not to mention blogs and emails from all of us, but the BBC have ruled that: “The Future State of Welfare with John Humphrys, broadcast in October 2011 breached rules on impartiality and accuracy” just as we argued at the […]
Ex-Atos nurse tells of disgust at Assessments
It’s clearly not enough for sick and disabled people to tell of their horrific experiences of an Atos Assessment for Employment and Support Allowance. It’s clearly not enough for journalists to write exposes and TV companies to produce documentaries. It’s clearly not enough for politicians from all sides of the House to debate the failings […]
We need to have a chat about the NHS
Lately, I’ve noticed - indeed been on the receiving end - of a new phenomenon. Suddenly, all over middle England, those drifting gently to the right of a fairly rightish centreground keep popping up on my timelines or in my inbox - or even all over my telly - to tell me patient care in […]
Open letter to Paul Maynard
Dear Mr Maynard, I watched your passionate defence of sick and disabled people in the House of Commons during the Opposition Day Debate on a cumulative impact assessment yesterday with a mixture of pride and horror. Just like you, I believe passionately in the abilities and potential of sick and disabled people too. I too […]
Hallelujah! The miracle of Atos strikes again
Every now and then, for a bit of a laugh, I play “Spot the truth” on the @DWPpressoffice twitter account. It would seem poverty rates came out today and I don’t suppose you need me to tell you they’ve gone up. Nonetheless, @DWPpressoffice are valiantly tweeting that some relative poverty levels have gone done and […]
PIP faces legal challenge!
“Please join us in countering the propaganda and mis-information our government are churning out today… Every challenge shows a few more people what is really going on in their name.” Sue Marsh sets out the facts about the Government’s welfare disability reforms.
Open letter to the Telegraph
Dear Daily Telegraph, Yesterday you published an article by Allison Pearson (“Mick Philpot, a good reason to cut benefits” 3rd April) based on a press release issued over the Easter weekend by Conservative Central Office. (NB: NOT the DWP who are barred from issuing overtly political and partisan press releases). Your original story (900,000 choose to come off […]
Yesterday’s Labour workfare massacre
This morning, like the night after Agincourt, lefties like me scan the bloody, burnt out social media #workfare battlefield in the hope of finding twitching Labour corpses. There are none. Like the French 600 years before, a few generals at the top of the pile made the fateful decision to crush the weak and exhausted. […]
Extraordinary! DWP refuse point blank to engage with Spartacus
A few weeks ago, Michael Meacher MP (Labour) came to see me in hospital. I had emailed him following his remarkable Atos debate, (the first to see cross party condemnation of ESA or Employment Support Allowance) to point out how much of the failure was the fault of Atos, and how much was actually controlled by […]
#esaSOS
“Many vulnerable people’s needs will suddenly be able to be overlooked or ignored, meaning they could end up losing the support they desperately need to manage their conditions.” Sue Marsh explains the consequences of changes to the flawed Work Capability Assessment (WCA) - and how you can help spread the message.