Work TV

In the wake of senior Tory MPs calling on the Prime Minister to end the benefit freeze, the SNP Shadow Work & Pensions spokesperson has renewed the party’s calls for an end to Tory austerity cuts to social security spending.

The benefit freeze was introduced in 2015 by then-Chancellor George Osborne and is due to continue until April 2020. The freeze means a real-terms cut to millions of people’s incomes and has been cited by the Resolution Foundation as cutting £210 per year from the country’s poorest families.

It has been reported that five former Cabinet ministers are calling on the UK Government to raise benefits in line with inflation, scrapping the benefits freeze. The SNP have been consistent in their calls to bring an end to the immoral benefits freeze, playing a key role in their pre-Budget demands to Chancellor Philip Hammond.

Official statistics from the House of Commons Library, outlined by SNP Shadow DWP Spokesperson Neil Gray MP in the Commons chamber last week, estimate the benefits freeze will cut £4.7 billion from the social security budget in the year 2019/20 alone, whilst the Chancellor’s investment in the Work Allowance totals only £3.38 billion in the four years until 2022.

Commenting, SNP Shadow DWP Spokesperson Neil Gray MP said:

“The benefit freeze has been the single biggest cut inflicted by the Tories on low income families and the time has come for them to end their ideologically-driven austerity agenda that even their own backbenchers now struggle to justify. Whilst politicians debate, millions of households across the UK are being pushed into further hardship.

“Next year almost £5bn will be wiped from low income families via the benefit freeze, whilst almost £3bn will be spent given tax cuts for higher earners, that is simply unacceptable.

“I’m renewing the SNP calls for the UK Government to wake up to the misery they are inflicting on those who are reaching out for help. The benefit freeze is immoral and must be scrapped.

“When Iain Duncan Smith, the former DWP Secretary of State, says the benefits freeze is no longer morally justified, this speaks to a huge problem with the UK Government’s handling of welfare.”

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The ABC is becoming more and more international. We were started as a European Association, but we are growing all the time.

We have just received this information today from our new-found friends in Canada.

Food banks across Canada help over 860, 000 Canadians EVERY month. For the third consecutive year, Subway is partnering with Food Banks Canada to help even more families with the goal of donating 2 million meals.

Visit participating Subway restaurants across Canada between November 3rd – 17^th and a meal will be donated to Food Banks Canada for every combo (sandwich/salad + any drink + any side) purchased. 

ABC Note: We enjoy a Subway lunch ourselves - more power to this Company in the relief they are giving to struggling families. 

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Esther McVey, Secretary of State for the Department for Work and Pensions, made a statement in the House of Commons on Universal Credit.

Following the announcement in the 2018 Budget that Universal Credit would be giving £1 billion of transitional funding. This includes a £1,000 increase in work allowances in Universal Credit, and additional support for individuals moving onto the new benefit.

Esther McVey opened her statement, saying that the package is worth £4.5 billion over the next five years and outlined details for the managed migration process.

Shadow Secretary of State for the Department for Work and Pensions, Margaret Greenwood, responded to the statement saying that the Universal Credit Programme is pushing families into poverty.

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The Big Lottery Fund, the UK’s largest community funder, has today published a new report that will help build the evidence base for the Government’s dormant accounts financial inclusion initiative. The report - Understanding the decision making of people who are experiencing financial exclusion – builds upon existing financial exclusion knowledge by sharing the stories of those with real life experience of struggling to access fair, appropriate and affordable financial products and services.

The report identifies some of the key challenges faced by the financially excluded. Contrary to popular perception, it identifies that many of those turning to high cost credit are fully aware of the extortionate rates they will be charged, but feel they have no choice but to go ahead with the provider. This is because they need the money urgently and for a necessity – leaving them feeling backed into a corner and unable to take the time to shop around.

Others are also aware that they are unlikely to be accepted by a cheaper, mainstream lender. This is exacerbated by low awareness of responsible lenders, such as credit unions and Community Development Finance Institutions, coupled with a perception that high cost lenders aggressively target low income areas with their marketing.

The research took place in a series of sessions held earlier this year with 62 people from a variety of backgrounds and situations, including unemployed and underemployed women from minority ethnic groups, young and lone parents, people in work on low incomes, and young men who have left care in the last few years. It focused on three financial products: credit, savings and insurance for people with less than £500 in savings. It shows how those already using high cost credit are caught in a spiral that they struggle to get out of – to break the cycle they need to be able to save money, but the high cost of credit repayments prevents them from being able to set money aside.

Even where people are not making credit repayments, most say that they find it hard, or impossible, to save regularly. Despite this, many budget carefully and make small, ad hoc savings – usually cash in jars – that they dip into as necessary. While it’s important for them to have easy access to money to help them get by, this means that their savings rarely build up.

When it comes to insurance, there is low awareness of home contents insurance – particularly among younger people – little trust that insurance companies will pay out in the event of a claim and a perception that insurance is expensive and difficult to understand. Although most councils offer their tenants ‘add on’ contents insurance (added to their rent for a low weekly cost) awareness of these schemes is also low.

Overall, feedback from the sessions was that credit needs to be ‘decided quickly, from a trusted source, and ideally flexible’; savings need to be ‘easy to do and not too easy to stop’; and insurance needs to be ‘understandable, appropriate, and from a trusted source’.

The report is to form part of the evidence-base underpinning the Big Lottery Fund’s involvement in a £55 million funding strand intended to focus on tackling financial exclusion. This was announced earlier this year by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sports (DCMS). The funding comes from bank and building society accounts that have not been used for fifteen years and where customers cannot be contacted. These are known as dormant accounts and the £55 million will be awarded to a new dedicated Financial Inclusion organisation, which will operate independently of government.

The research was conducted through telephone interviews and focus groups held across the country between March and June 2018. Participants were asked about their experiences and attitudes towards borrowing money, insurance products, and making savings, and any challenges they’d faced in doing this. Participants were also encouraged to give suggestions for possible solutions they thought would work best for them.

Gemma Bull, Big Lottery Fund Portfolio Development Director, England said: “Those who are living with the daily effects of facing barriers to financial inclusion are best-placed to tell us what solutions would make things better. We hope that the end user perspective reflected in this report will be useful in supporting the work of not only the new Financial Inclusion organisation that is being set up, but also other funders, policy makers and practitioners as we seek to tackle the challenge of improving access to fair and affordable financial products and services for all.”

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 ABC NOTE: You can download the report 'Understanding the Decision making of People Facing Financial Exclusion' below: 

Today is the fifth anniversary of the launch of the ABC website (2014). We chose November 5^th as it is a good day for revolutionaries.

It is scary how much water has flowed over the dam. We are still here and still making progress. We thank all those who have visited our website and those who have helped us along the way.

Lots more to do. More of that later.

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We must congratulate Lidl’s for stocking a razor brand called the Cien.

We have been using this razor for a couple of weeks and we are grateful we have been released from the outrageous prices of the Gillette 'Mach' multi-blade refills which, like manufacturers ink cartridges, are grossly overpriced. People on low incomes are excluded from buying some products. Especially for those job seeking, where you must send out CV’s and cover letters and look smart. It is not easy to fund the outrageous prizes Gillette want on the below survival income that Universal Credit represents.

Lidl’s have some excellent products and we have lots of praise for there new Abbotts Road, Colchester store. Our only criticism - they could do with a few more people on the tills at lunchtimes and other busy periods. We do enjoy their thick, creamy, Hunters Sauce and it shows you can have good products at good prices.

There's nothing like a good close shave in the morning and thankfully we can have one now without breaking the bank. 

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The national rollout of universal credit has been repeatedly delayed after MPs and charities issued dire warnings about the impact it was having on vulnerable people.

Labour, along with the Church of England and hundreds of charities, has called for the rollout to be halted completely, but ministers have vowed to push ahead with the policy and make sure they get it right.

The government's flagship universal credit policy will be defeated in Parliament unless ministers make further changes to protect vulnerable people, a senior MP, Frank Field has warned.

Frank Field MP, chairs the Commons work and pensions committee, said ministers risked a defeat in parliament unless they made further concessions.

The government has faced sustained pressure over fears about the impact the policy will have on millions of low-paid people. Over two hundred charities and faith groups have complained about UC.

Universal Credit is a benefit that moulds six benefits into one and is due to be rolled out in full nationally in July 2019 and is expected to take four years to fully implement.

Philip Hammond, the chancellor, announced a further £1bn of funding for the scheme in last week's Budget but critics said it would not be enough money to provide sufficient support to those who need it. 

Image: Alok Sharma, Employment Minister.

Mr Field has requested that ministers give the committee a copy of a plan for moving claimants over to the new system, but in correspondence published by the committee, Alok Sharma, the employment minister, said it would not be appropriate to "diverge from the standard process for the scrutiny of draft regulations" and delay their introduction.

Mr Field said: "Having got it so disastrously wrong with its first attempt, you'd think that the government would want to make sure its plans to move vulnerable people on to universal credit stand up to scrutiny.

"That hardly inspires confidence that it has really made the changes needed to ensure that its actions won't simply plunge people deeper into poverty.

Food Bank use is up by 40% in some areas. 

"If its new plans don't have enough safeguards to protect the vulnerable, then MPs will be left with no option but to vote them down."

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Next week, 5^th and 6^th Nov, Knowledge Pathways International  are organising two events in partnership with European Commission as part of the European Skills Week. Knowledge Pathways International is the ONLY organisation in the East of the United Kingdom organising similar events. You can see the interactive map here.  These events will offer people of all ages an excellent opportunity to develop their skills, prepare for jobs, and improve their employability. We want to successfully prepare people for interesting and challenging careers, as well as active engagement in society by helping them become more self-aware to reach their full potential.

Event 1: Understand Yourself = Achieve Better https://www.kpinternational.co.uk/training/understand-yourself-achieve-better-5th-november/

Event 2: Business Plans in the 21^st Century https://www.kpinternational.co.uk/business-plans-in-the-21st-century-6th-november/

To book contact: 

Abdul Razouk

Founder and Director

Knowledge Pathways International

Unit 1 Block B, The Knowledge Gateway

University of Essex

Colchester, CO4 3ZL

T:   +44 1206 589000

E:   This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

W: www.kpinternational.co.uk  

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A campaign to see millions of pounds wrongly held by HMRC repaid to 4000 workers across the UK has been won after a parliamentary campaign led by Airdrie & Shotts MP Neil Gray.

The Roadchef Employee Benefit Trust has been in dispute with HMRC over £10million wrongly paid in tax by Roadchef’s former CEO twenty years ago. Mr Gray led calls in the House of Commons for the £10m plus interest to be repaid to trustees, and an as yet undisclosed payment has now been accepted by the Roadchef Employee Benefit Trust marking a significant win against previous intransigence from HMRC.

But the campaign isn’t over as the way HMRC now treats payments to the former workers is still to be agreed. Mr Gray is urging HMRC to honour its previously stated commitment that neither the Trust nor the workers will be liable for tax.

Commenting, SNP MP Neil Gray said:

“I am absolutely thrilled that the campaign to see monies returned has been won, but work continues to ensure HMRC honours its commitment regarding tax implications going forward.

“For eighteen months I’ve been campaigning on behalf of my constituents who’ve been caught up in a battle they didn’t choose to receive money rightfully owed to them from their time working at Roadchef.

“Today marks a significant milestone in what has been a 20 plus year battle for the Roadchef Employee Benefits Trustees with confirmation that an undisclosed sum in the millions has been returned to the Trust.  This follows a wrongful payment from the former CEO of Roadchef amounting to over £10m back in 2000.

 "I argued in Parliament that this sum of money belonged to around 4,000 former and current Roadchef employees and I took that campaign from debates to direct questions to the Chancellor and even the Prime Minister.

“I am pleased that HMRC has acted as a result and thank them for that on behalf of my constituents, but questions remain about the way this has been handled and what happens next.

“The Trust has previously received confirmation from HMRC that payments to both the Trust and the beneficiaries would be tax-free, but as time ticks on, nervousness is setting in that they may not honour this assurance. HMRC should now confirm quickly that they will not pursue trustees or beneficiaries for tax.

“The Treasury Select Committee is also looking at this matter and there will be serious questions to answer if this isn’t the case.

“HMRC has it in their power to bring a conclusion to this struggle and the time is right to seize that opportunity and let thousands of people move on with the lives they should have led decades ago.”

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A DWP Barrister stopped Simon Collyer's case being heard in the Chelmsford County Court; 26 October 2018. The government has cut the Legal Aid budget by one third and without legal represntaion in Court the DWP were able to use technical arguments to stop the case actually being heard. 

Deputy District Judge Rodger sitting in the County Court at Colchester, Falkland House, 25 Southway, Colchester, Essex, CO3 3EG - the case was actually heard at Chelmsford County Court - ordered the Clain struck out pursuant to CPR 3.4 (2)(g) and (b).

Power to strike out a statement of case

(2) The court may strike out a statement of case if it appears to the court –

                (b) that the statement of case is an abuse of the court’s process or is otherwise likely to obstruct the just disposal of the proceedings; or

                (g) This is interesting as there appears to be NO paragragh (g) 

Following this I wrote to the iPaper and the Guardian. This letter explains the case and my arguments. 

++++

I am a Millennium Award winner and my organization the - Association of Pension & Benefit Claimants CIC - has been the recipient of two BIG Lottery grants, the latter to start Work TV.

In a personal capacity, I sued the DWP recently and a hearing was held on Friday in Chelmsford County Court to decide whether or not the case should go forward. The DWP was represented by a government barrister. To cut the story short, I was offered a job just prior to Christmas 2016 in home improvement sales.  I do work from time-to-time to support our organization, that we call the ABC for short. (www.abcorg.net). My Jobcentre Plus Work Coach would not offer any financial support under the Flexible Support Fund as the job she said was self-employed.  The Company offered me no sales leads after I refused to go out and see customers just before Christmas in my first week, before a broken windscreen wiper linkage was fixed. I had also asked repeatedly when the advertised petrol expenses support would be paid. My manager did not seem to like that, and I felt I was being managed out of the business (an industry term) as I was given no sales leads in the New Year.   I just turned up for sales meetings for two months.

I took the Company to an Employment Tribunal and proved that I was a dependent worker and that I should be paid at least minimum wages. On my first day of work for Right2Improve Ltd in Chelmsford, I was photographed by a camera van in Chelmsford and fined for not having Road Tax. I had asked for DWP help for this item, but I had been turned down. Under the terms of the Claimant Commitment, a contract which is based on the Jobseekers Act 2012, a Bill that was introduced by Iain Duncan Smith - I was obliged in law to accept a job if it has been offered. I argued that it was a job, not a self-employed business opportunity. I also argued that my Work Coach, knowing that I would be breaking the law, should have issued a Job Seekers Direction telling NOT to take the job. I argued that as over 60% of DWP decisions are overturned at a tribunal, I could not take the risk of not taking the job as the DWP were looking for a reason to sanction people. The fines for committing a criminal offense, such as driving without Road Tax, are much less punitive than risking a Higher-Level sanction and being left with no money for several months - even if later at Tribunal I won my case. As a diabetic (2) I had just complained to the DWP Area Director, Carol Morris about the DWP stopping people’s money while they investigated issues such as this one, and I later received an apology.

The Company Right2Improve Limited were raided by the Essex Police and Oxfordshire Trading Standards and they and their sister Company EnviroSolar went into liquidation this summer. The judge on Friday 26th rejected hearing my case, however, I am concerned to hear that Esther McVey is threatening retaliation against a charity in Torbay for criticizing Universal Credit by stopping a BIG Lottery grant.  The ABC is just applying for a Digital Grant from BIG Lottery, to launch Work TV. The government should not be silencing its critics with threats of retaliation against those that speak the truth. Claimants should not be forced to break the law to take up a job, because the Tailored Support promised from the Flexible Support Fund by the Rt Hon. Iain Duncan Smith, is in reality just another piece of his fiction. 

<end>

This sums it up. I broke the law by obeying the law. It was better to break the law and get a fine than get a Higher-Level sanction (13 to 156 weeks). Where even in the DWP investigated the matter - I could have my benefits stopped for a period. An appeal could take months and, in many cases, the DWP would not even turn up for the final hearing. I would not be paid any interest on the withheld money, and the DWP would benefit by not paying out my JSA, even if it was later proved that they were in the wrong.  

This case shows how skewed sanctions have become. Where being five minuets late for a meeting  could cost you more than being fined in Court. It also shows that how cuts to Legal Aid are helping the government by taking away the means for ordinary citizens to challenge, maladministration including, inept, dishonest and totally floored administration.  

It feels odd to lose in Court, when one has followed the law to the letter.  There is a campaign running to take back the common law courts to the common people. I guess we ought to support it. 

ABC Note: Simon has taken this case to the  Independent Case Examiner to see if they would take on this case. What is interesting is whether or not the decision to take ‘No Decision’ is in fact a decision? You need a decision to ask for a Mandatory Reconsideration. 

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