The Department for Work and Pensions is considering forcing all sick and disabled people on out-of-work disability benefits to take part in “mandatory” activity, its new green paper has revealed.
The suggestion of compulsory activity is revealed in a single line of the 92-page work, health and disability green paper, published this week.
Such a change would mean that all people on out-of-work disability benefits – even those who are terminally-ill or have the very highest support needs – would have to stay in regular touch with their local jobcentre or risk having their benefits sanctioned.
Thank you for bringing this to our attention Jeff. It is high time the DWP were held to account for the appalling injustices that are happening. Another one is the bedroom tax which has hit so many people.
Hi Cheers defo agree THIS no end to bull DWP come out with.
Clearly a tick come up with that idea AS logistics of it as not been thought out CLASSIC jobs worth in my opinion MUST be after feather in the cap DEFO a tool
Although many will crucify me for this, I agree with the principle! As government is funded by tax payers (same as disabled) government should provide suitable work for the long term disabled (NOT terminal) so, councillors role involves lots of sitting around being paid substantial amounts for designing silly ideas - name me the person here who couldn't do that?
Council workers involve having one worker (who could be able bodied) surrounded by a multitude of "watchers" - again, with seating made available, the disabled could do this (for £25k a year!).
Council receptionists; trained in the sacred art of (ringing) telephone watching [rather than actually answering it], I'm sure with suitable and sufficient training many disabled people would eventually and after many, many hours of training develop the anti-service skills currently employed in council offices up and down the country.
Paper pushing: another skill which is the sacred preserve of the public sector workers, again, to take normal (albeit disabled) people, add liberal amounts of training and, whilst I suspect some would never master the art, some would be able to learn how to move papers from the "in tray" to the "out tray" whilst ensuring that no activity occurred in between the trays.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not suggesting that councils don't do a good job (rather that they don't do ANY job) but, my suggestion, if expanded COULD result in disabled AND INTELLIGENT MP's .... now wouldn't that be something??
Seriously, bedroom tax was introduced but no smaller houses were built, disabled have to get a job but no thought of how they would do it - one day, maybe, government will wake up and start thinking silly sound-bite ideas through before spouting stupidity!!
At £25K pa I am afraid that you are woefully out of touch as to how much it costs for the full expenditure of keeping a severely disabled person for a year.
Not thrills, luxuries or outings, just the same food and tv diet that many disabled people live on.
I was once employed by my local council, knitter, and there were many good and honest workers. However, I also saw numerous examples of the type of worker y_not so humorously describes. I remember one man leaving and everybody trying to guess what he had been employed to do as he was never replaced and we didn't notice any work piling up. In any large organisation there will be hard working people and a selection of those who look to avoid as much work as possible - that's human nature it seems.
I agree toci, but there are workers who do not pull their weight in the private sector too......picking on public sector workers just reinforces a stereotype.
Pitting the private and public sectors against each other .....divide and rule .
When I see how hard my daughter works....late night meetings with the public, years of training to get her MA....and for what ..a great scratch down the side of her car because it was seen in a council car park, and all the time battling with asthma and multiple allergies .
Schools , community centres ...some of the things that my late father designed....again after years of training, and again battling with a stomach ulcer that had him often doubled in pain and vomiting at work.
Sorry for the rant , but throwaway comments about public sector workers infuriate me.
knitter, I can only say it as I find it. The Ombudsman recently agreed with me that the council were slow to respond, failed to address the issues, did not consider many of the options open to it nor did they take account of the disabled - the ombudsman then awarded me £100 (considering my two-year battle that was just a token).
Whilst councils will, no doubt employ some excellent people, it is my experience that they have a disproportionate number of jobsworths, incompetent's and people who take the "easy-ride" of public sector employment.
So yes, my comment was intended as humorous but there was/is a certain frustration at the people who, generally without qualification, waste yours and my taxes with such abandonment.
Yes. I had one of their wheelchairs. Brilliant chair. Well build and agile. Rib
Ridiculous! Honestly politicians have no idea of the suffering of people with a disability. What is the point of making people keep in touch with a jobcentre when they just can't work?
One of my sisters has severe osteoarthritis. She walks with a stick. She is in constant pain either sitting or standing, her legs and hands swell up enormously, and all her joints including her hips are very painful. She is in the support group. I wonder what kind of work they think she could do? Her condition can only get worse and she is often quite befuddled because of the strong pain meds she is on. Like I said - ridiculous.
Ludicrous article, that isn't what the green paper says at all. For instance, 'mandatory' is used a couple of times, once with regard to training staff and once with regard to supporting people who are already using a job centre.
petermeacham has a good point...............
Proper reading of the Green paper will reveal that it is a document for consultation....not a hard and fast proposal..
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Job-Covid-Mask-COPD & Emphysema
Who could you ask about if your entitled to any benifits. 
transplant with no social support?
steroid withdrawal again!
New medication for COPD.
