…that they all know exactly how bad things are for people who need social security. Their surgeries must be full of people who can’t meet the rent, have been sanctioned, must live in shitty housing, are being treated badly at jobcentres, can’t get support workers, or enough carer hours, or can’t meet an energy bill, or have massive forms to fill in to claim a benefit and so on. They must absolutely know how things are.
I can say this, because I know a lot about the way these things are myself. I get heaps of emails and contacts from people who need help with these things. I’m just one blogger and and I can’t keep up with the number of people who need some kind of help. I’m not even sure what to tell people anymore. People just get angry if you suggest the CAB. They say that they’ve tried and the CAB is oversubscribed. I don’t even reply to some emails these days, because I just don’t know what to say and I end up making a sort of non-decision to do nothing. I haven’t got anything helpful to say. Everyone I know who works in these areas – paid workers, volunteers, campaigners – is overstretched beyond belief. I talk about it with people all the time. People burn out all over the place.
MPs know this. They see it. People who need social security don’t just disappear because parliament tells a small voting public that they should. I find that the more people government strikes from the Deserving list, the more people get in contact for help. Everyone who is on the ground knows that. Pity there’s nowhere to take that knowledge.
The Labour abstainers represent the triumph of career over principle.
After all, if you went to Oxford to study a Politics degree, wouldn’t you want to get your money’s worth ?
What some of them fail to realize is that they were elected to provide Her Majesty’s Opposition, not Her Majesty’s Surrender Monkeys.
Well said, Jeff. These people are the end. Christ if I was Labour, I’d be thinking – we’re going down here for the last time. Might as well go down fighting. They’re not even going out in style. It’s horrendous.
Tonight’s Channel 4 News drew attention to a speech by veteran Labour dissenter Dennis Skinner. Skinner said that for all Osborner’s references to the Labour Party leadership contest, Osborne does not mention the Tory Party leadership campaign that Osborne is engaged in even before Cameron’s resignation from Tory Party leadership.
It is increasingly clear now — or should be — even to those who have not read Naomi Klein’s 2007 book The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism the direction the Tories have been leading the UK toward in terms of ‘the shrinkage of the state’. And Blairite and Labour ‘leadership contender’ Andy Burnham says ‘we cannot simply abstain on this bill’ (after abstaining on the bill).
Well, Andy Burnham, there is ‘leadership, there is ’20:20 hindsight’ and there is arse licking. Which is your most dominant mode?
I don’t think this “we’re abstaining so as not to abstain” thing is as catchy as it might be. As I like to say – if you’re going to be useless, at least be clear. I try to live by that myself.
Ah, SlaveLabour… A shiny example of how a working class movement can be bought & moulded by the rich – for the rich.
Sir Keir Starmer as MP for Holborn & St Pancras (my constituency) abstained. He says that the Bill’s ‘commitment’ to ‘apprenticeships’ was fairly commendable.
I reckon his reasoning shows how out of touch he is with ‘Generation Jobless’ And how ignoratnt he is with regard to the extra boost Labour’s non-opposition gives to Gideon Osborne’s drive to destroy public services.
Meanwhile, we must remember that there were 48 Labour MPs who voted against this Bill.
It must be heartbreaking for you Kate for you to be in such a position that you really can’t help everyone, or even have the wherewithal at times to reply.
The fact is though that you have given as much as you can of yourself to many people over the years, and there’s only so much you can do before burning out yourself; then you’ll be no good to anyone.
People can seek help from other groups and sites and cannot just expect one person to be responsible for helping others. There’s ‘fightback’, ‘benefits and work’, sites for those seeking the rules concerning JSA, and if people are vulnerable with LD they should be able to insist that social services give them the support they need. Certainly, when I posted on DPAC about what happened in my care assessment, I was emailed with about 4 different groups/individuals and the law about care.
It is really tough out there, but there is still a lot of info and support that you can find. It is frightening when you have to face it alone, but the knowledge that’s out there can help you with it. I’ve asked for help before, and sometimes I’ve received it from people, sometimes not. When I haven’t, then I’ve had to go and search somewhere else. I didn’t hold it against the person for not helping.
Please then don’t feel guilty when you’re just not up to it. Most people will understand, especially after reading your blog.
Where Welfare Reform & Work Bill abstaining Labour MPs have the backing of an anti-WR&WB trade union, could those MPs be accused of making fraudulent claims?
I find the first paragraph of anti-debt charity blog Z2K’s analysis of the Welfare Reform & Work Bill proceedings history very incisive: Welfare reform and work bill receives second reading