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PROTEST - 28th September, Westminster – Join the DPAC (Disabled People Against Cuts)  #Audioriot Protest For #20moreforall, On The Streets And Online (plus local actions on 25th September). 

The government isn’t listening to what people are saying when we say Stop The Cuts to Universal Credit and give #20MoreForAll say the DPAC. 

So the DPAC says they need to start an #AudioRiot to make the government hear them.

On
Tuesday 28th September
11:30am
Westminster Central Hall
Storeys Gate
SW1H 9NH

This is what the organisers have to say:

Join the  #AudioRiot and make some noise about the devastating changes to benefits which will have a huge impact on millions of peoples lives, including disabled people.

Bring everything you can that makes noise.

DPAC will be providing materials for you to take part too – but don’t let that stop you bringing:

Drums
Whistles
Cymbals
Bells
Klaxons
Loudspeakers

Everything you can!

Organisers say:

  • Make some noise about the £20 cut to Universal Credit coming in September.
  • Make some noise about the reintroduction of sanctions and conditionality returning in October.
  • Make some noise about the discrimination against those on legacy benefits who never got the £20 to begin with.
  • Make some noise about the minimum income floor, the local area housing allowance and so much more
  • Make some noise about the disgraceful state of benefits in the UK overall.
  • This action will round off a series of events to raise awareness about the coming changes to benefits.

These include

Saturday 25th September 2021

Local Actions Nationwide

The DPAC are calling on all DPAC members, local groups & allies to mobilise is their areas to create an #AudioRiot of your own to resist the coming cuts and invite others to join the campaign.

Create your own orchestra with homemade instruments, create your own playlists and play them through phones/speakers, form a samba band – whatever works for you!

Send us details of your planned action, and we will promote it through our website, email network and social media channels.

And

Tuesday 28th September 2021
09:15 – 10:00 am

Vigil in support of those taking a Judicial Review of potential discrimination by DWP towards disabled people on legacy benefits.

Royal Courts of Justice
Strand
London
WC2A 2LL

NEAREST STEP FREE STATION: Westminster

Online action

Details to follow

DPAC is aware that many of us in our community are still isolated, shielding, or even just protecting themselves and their loved ones; and cautious about taking part in public activism.

This is no barrier to taking part!! There will be online actions you can take

However, as our collective experience through since Covid entered our lives has taught us – disabled people need to have a central role in the discussions about how we build a future for us all that has a place for us all. That begins with defending what we have and building on it.

We have seen under successive governments of all stripes that the only way we can have any chance to secure that central role is to oppose government policies in the streets. We have been demonised, targeted and brutalised by attacks to our rights , services, living standards & working conditions for decades.

It is only by mobilising our community and allies in the face of theses attacks that we have been able to raise awareness and resist them.

And, that will be how we will continue to progress from here. With a view to reshaping the world to meet our aspirations.

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UNIVERSAL CREDIT - The Big Issue Ride Out Recession Alliance, Crisis, The Mortgage Works, Nationwide Building Society, the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA), Propertymark, StepChange Debt Charity, and Shelter have together released this statement:

The UK Government must complete and publish a full assessment of the impact on renters of their decisions to freeze Local Housing Allowance and cut Universal Credit, which risk pushing many households into poverty, problem debt, and homelessness.

In the wake of the pandemic, we saw bold and swift action from the Government to prevent a housing debt crisis including restoring Local Housing Allowance rates to the 30th percentile of market rents and increasing the Universal Credit Personal Allowance.

With the economic impact of the pandemic increasing the financial strain on families, across the country the number of private rented households in receipt of the housing element of Universal Credit increased by 107% between February 2020 and February 2021. Over 55% of these households have a shortfall between the housing support they receive and the rent they have to pay. 

Eviction Notice 02

Image: Eviction Notice. 

The UK Government has confirmed that where such shortfalls exist, the median amount is £100 a month. This points to a need for continued support for families and individuals to cover the cost of rents. Yet since April this year, Local Housing Allowance has been frozen in cash terms, and later this year, Universal Credit will be cut by £20 a week. 

Whilst the Institute for Fiscal Studies has described changes to Local Housing Allowance as “arbitrary and unfair” we have seen no assessment from the UK Government of the impact either of these policies will have on the capacity of recipients to cover rent payments. 

As organisations representing landlords, letting agents, tenants, people facing homelessness, and debt advice services, we are united in calling on the UK Government to complete and publish a full assessment of the impact of both of these policies on the ability of renters to meet their housing costs.

We believe that the UK Government should reverse its decisions to cut Universal Credit and to freeze Local Housing Allowance. To apply policies like these without doing any meaningful impact assessment is, we argue, lacking the necessary foresight and consideration of the impact they will have on people’s security of tenure and well-being and for many will threaten their chance of recovery.

Rent Crisis

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THOUSANDS - of disabled people on out of work benefits, such as Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) and Jobseeker’s Allowance, are facing considerable mental health and physical challenges as the pandemic has left them struggling financially, new research shows.

The stark findings are from the latest Disability Benefits Consortium’s (DBC) survey1. It was filled out by over 1,800 disabled people in receipt of out of work benefits (also known as ‘legacy benefits’) – including those with multiple sclerosis (MS), motor neurone disease (MND), and learning disabilities – and found:

  • Over two thirds (78%) said their financial situation was ‘worse’ compared to at the start of the pandemic
  • Half (52%) are spending ‘significantly more’ on household bills and utilities than they were before the pandemic, with a third (37%) spending ‘somewhat more’
  • Individuals’ weekly income meant they were unable or struggling to eat a balanced diet (67%), attend medical appointments due to public transport, petrol and taxi costs (33%), and pay bills, including their water, gas, electric, rent and mortgage (67%)
  • Just under half (46%) were falling behind on rent or mortgage payments

Royal Courts of Justice

Image: High Courts of Justice. 

The findings come one month before the High Court is to hear on 28 and 29 September whether the Government acted unlawfully by not giving nearly 2 million disabled people on legacy benefits the same emergency increase of £20 per week that was given to people on Universal Credit to help them survive the COVID-19 crisis.

Samantha, 50, from Southampton is partially sighted. She also lives with chronic spinal problems, bowel incontinence, nerve damage in her right foot, as well as depression and anxiety. She is on ESA and Personal Independence Payment (PIP), and relies heavily on her sister and 13-year-old son to care for her.

Talking about the impact of the pandemic on her finances, she says: “The Government have made me feel like a second class citizen – it’s incredibly unfair and discriminatory that they didn’t give people like me the extra £20 per week to help survive the pandemic. I understand the top up was for general living, but when you’re disabled your living expenses are exactly the same.

“My finances have taken a huge hit since the pandemic started. My son – who does the shopping for me – had to shop locally as he was too young for me to send him to a major supermarket. This meant everything was more expensive – even things like a loaf of bread. As he was off school it meant we were going through more food, so I was going without my meals so he could eat three times a day.

“I also couldn’t risk putting the heating on, so through winter we both had to wear three cardigans each. I had to make sure I was taking my medication as I was in a hell of a lot of pain – made worse by the cold.

“Having an extra £20 per week then, and now, would mean I could get a supermarket delivery and not rely on my son to be off school so he could push me in my wheelchair to the shops.”

In response to the DBC survey, one person said: “I’ve lost over 15kg in body weight from going hungry.” Another said: “At the moment I have no bath or shower as I cannot use the bath due to my disability and the shower is broken and I cannot afford to replace it. It is a horrible way to live.”

In addition, someone wrote: “I cannot afford to socialise and attend events that used to help my mental health. I am now more physically disabled than before the pandemic started and cannot afford taxis.”

The Government has continually defended this decision. Excuses have ranged from saying this would be “too complicated” for their computer system to arguing they weren’t aware of any extra-costs or impact on disabled people. Most recently they have said people on legacy benefits have the option to switch to Universal Credit, ignoring the fact that wider adjustments could leave people worse off, as well as serious flaws in the assessment and monitoring process of Universal Credit.

Respondents to the DBC survey said they felt the Government’s actions were ‘discriminatory’ (46%), ‘cruel’ (21%), and unfair (21%), with one person saying: “The Government are sending a clear message that the disabled do not matter’. Another noted: “I think they hope to drive us all to suicide or an earlier death from our disabilities.”

Anastasia Berry, Policy Manager at the MS Society and Policy Co-Chair of the DBC, says: “The impact of the pandemic has been devastating for many disabled people, and it’s heartbreaking to read these latest findings. For the last 18 months we’ve called on the Government time and time again to stop discriminating against disabled people, and yet here we are again. How much more evidence do they need to show that disabled people, including those with MS, must stop being ignored and given the financial support they desperately need?”

“MS can be relentless, painful and disabling, and around a third living with the condition have to rely on ESA because they are simply unable to work. Disabled people are being punished for something that is beyond their control, and it shouldn't take another survey, or the Government being taken to court, to acknowledge this.”

 Ellen Clifford, on behalf of the DPAC, said: “It’s beyond time that the Government rectified their discriminatory approach to the £20 benefit uplift applied to Universal Credit during the pandemic. The failure to do this ignores the fact that it’s disabled people’s unavoidable essential spending that went up the most as a direct result of the pandemic.

“In the sixth richest country in the world no one should be left too poor to bathe, too poor to do their laundry, too poor to eat and to heat. This at the same time as disabled people have been in desperate fear for their lives with a minimum 60% of Covid-related deaths being those of disabled people and many of those on legacy benefits isolated and shielding for well over a year. This is one injustice that could be put right so easily and at relatively little expense to the Treasury. It’s abhorrent that the government refuses still.”

Ella Abraham, Z2K’s Policy and Campaigns Manager and Campaigns Co-chair of the DBC, said: “It’s been 18 months of discriminatory Government excuses which have continued to leave 2.5 million people without the vital income they need to support them throughout the pandemic and beyond.

“The Government must end this two-tier welfare state to ensure disabled people and those with health conditions aren’t pushed any further into poverty and destitution.”

For more information visit https://disabilitybenefitsconsortium.com/campaign-news/

Disabled Person in a Wheelchair 02

Image - Disabled people have been having a very hard time under the current government. 

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DEPRESSION - Johann Hari Challenges the Way We Think About Depression

In a moving talk, journalist Johann Hari shares fresh insights on the causes of depression and anxiety from experts around the world -- as well as some exciting emerging solutions.

"If you're depressed or anxious, you're not weak and you're not crazy -- you're a human being with unmet needs," Hari says.

 

 

1629863946087

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Wednesday 25 August, 2021

Temporary Jobcentre Locations

JOBCENTRE PLUS - DWP is setting up temporary jobcentres during 2021 to deal with increased demand.

The new jobcentres will provide services across the country where they are needed. They will increase capacity to provide tailored face-to-face support in a COVID-secure environment and help support more people back into work and progress into new roles.

DWP will review the need for these temporary jobcentres as the economy recovers.

Temporary jobcentre locations

More temporary jobcentres will be added to the list when locations are confirmed.

JobcentreAddress
Aberdeen City Wharf, Shiprow, AB11 5BY
Ashford Unit 112, County Square Shopping Centre, TN23 1YB
Ashton Under Lyne 101 Old Street, OL6 6BJ
Ayr Wallacetoun House, John Street, KA8 0BX
Banbury Unit 9a, Castle Quay Shopping Centre, OX16 5UH
Barking Maritime House, 1 Linton Road, Barking IG11 8HG
Barnsley Wellington House, 36 Market Street, Barnsley, S70 1WA
Basildon Church Walk, Great Oaks, SS14 1GJ
Basingstoke Centenary House, 10 Winchester Road, Basingstoke, RG21 8UG
Bath Pinesgate, Lower Bristol Road, Bath, BA2 3DP
Bedford The Annex, Woodlands, MK41 7NU
Bexleyheath Unit C, Broadway Shopping Centre, DA6 7JN
Birmingham B1, Summer Hill Road, B1 3RB
Birmingham Unit 40, Newtown Shopping Centre, B19 2SS
Birmingham Unit 40-42 Greenwood Way, Chelmsley Wood Shopping Centre B37 5TP
Blyth Bridge House, Percy Street, Blyth, NE24 2AQ
Bolton Orlando Bridge, Thynne Street, BL3 6BH
Bournemouth Tringham House, Castle Lane East, BH7 7DT
Bracknell Phoenix House, Cookham Road off Longshot Lane, RG12 1RB
Bradford Aldermanbury House, 2 - 4 Godwin Street, BD1 2ST
Bristol 101 Victoria Street, BS1 6PU
Bristol Knowle 25 Broadwalk Shopping Centre, Broad Walk, Bristol, BS4 2QU
Burnley 7 Market Square, Charter Walk, BB11 1AX
Burton upon Trent Unit 1, Union Street, DE14 1AA
Bury (Manchester) 27a The Haymarket, Millgate Shopping Centre, BL9 0BX
Cambridge Henry Giles House, 73-79 Chesterton Road, Cambridge, CB4 3BQ
Cannock 4-5 The Forum, Market Hall Street, Cannock, WS11 1EB
Canterbury Unit 4, 6-8 Longmarket, Canterbury, CT1 2JS
Cardiff NSU2 Capital Shopping Centre, Queen, Street, CF10 2HQ
Chelmsford 39 The Meadows, Chelmsford, CM2 6FD
Chester 32-38 Foregate Street, CH1 1HA
Chesterfield 28 Steeplegate, Vicar Lane, S40 1PY
Chichester Building 2&3, Southgate Office Village, PO19 8GR
Colchester 14 Headgate, Colchester, Essex, CO3 3FH
Coventry Coventry Arena, Judds Lane, CV6 6GE
Crawley One Forest Gate, RH11 9PT
Crawley (Gatwick) Spectrum House, Beehive Ring Road, RH6 0LG
Darlington Suites 1-3 The Beehive, Lingfield Point, Darlington, DL1 1RW
Derby 20 Albion Walk, DE1 2PL
Derby Barclays Business Centre, Sir Frank Whittle Way, DE21 4RX
Dewsbury Unit 25, Princess of Wales Precinct, Dewsbury, WF13 1NH
Doncaster The Blue Building, 39-40 High Street, DN1 1DE
Dudley 237-238a Market Place, High Street, Dudley, West Midlands, DY1 1PQ
Dundee 140 West Marketgait, Dundee, Scotland, DD1 1NJ
Edinburgh Lyndean House, 199 Commercial Street, Leith, Edinburgh, EH6 6QP
Exeter Units 1 and 2, The Depot, Belgrave Road, Exeter, EX1 2FT
Falkirk Former BHS, Callendar Square Shopping Centre, FK1 1UJ
Folkestone 14-16 Sandgate Road, CT20 1DP
Forest Hill 212 Lewisham High Street, SE13 6JP
Gateshead Unit B24, Metrocentre, NE11 9YG
Glasgow 200 Renfield Street, Glasgow, G2 3QB
Gloucester 44-50 Eastgate Street, GL1 1QN
Gravesend 5/10 New Road, DA11 0AA
Halifax Unit 6b, Broadstreet Plaza, HX1 1YQ
Harlow Unit 58-60, Harvey Shopping Centre, CM20 1XR
Hereford 6 Trinity Square, Maylord Shopping Centre, Hereford, HR1 2DR
High Wycombe 31 High Street, HP11 2AG
Huddersfield Unit 2, 11 Trinity Street, HD1 4DA
Hull 40 Whitefriargate, HU1 2HW
Inverness Unit 2, 39 Glendoe Terrace, Inverness, IV3 8DL
Ipswich St Vincent House, 1 Cutler Street, IP1 1 LL
Keighley 35-39 Low Street, BD21 3PU
Kettering 45-49 High Street, Kettering, NN16 8SU
Kidderminster Unit J2 Crossley Retail Park, Carpet Trades Way, DY11 6DY
Kings Lynn 30-34 Broad Street, PE30 1DP
Kingston Anstee House, Wood Street, KT1 1TS
Lancaster Mitre House, Church Street, Lancaster, LA1 1JW
Leamington Spa Brandon House, Holly Walk, Leamington Spa, CV32 4JE
Leeds Temple House, Limewood Approach, Seacroft, LS14 1NH
Leeds 123 Albion Street, Great George Street, LS2 8ER
Leeds The Green Building, Kirkstall Road, LS4 2BT
Leicester Pegasus House, 17 Burleys Way, LE1 3BH
Lincoln Unit 1 Witham Wharf, Brayford Wharf East, Lincoln, LN5 7AY
Liverpool Innovation Park, Edge Lane, L7 9NJ
Liverpool 90 Duke Street, L1 5AA
Liverpool Bootle Unit 127-130, The Palatine Strand Shopping Centre, Bootle, Merseyside, L20 4SU
London Barnet Building 2, North London Business Park, N11 1GN
London Barnsbury (Islington) Building 1, Cally Yard, Caledonian Road, London, N7 9BG
London Bromley 129 Burnt Ash Lane, Bromley, London, BR1 5AJ
London Croydon Borough Simpson House, 6 Cherry Orchard Way, CR9 6BE
London Ealing 54 The Broadway, W5 5JN
London Edmonton 13-16 North Square, Edmonton Green Shopping Centre, Edmonton, London N9 0HW
London Hackney 2 Hillman Street, E8 1DY
London Hackney 3 Haberdasher Street, Hoxton, London, N1 6ED
London Hammersmith 1 Hammersmith Broadway, W6 9DL
London Kentish Town 1-7 Hermes Studios, 1 Hermes Street, London, N1 9JD
London Marylebone Euston House, 24 Eversholt Street, NW1 1DB
London Mitcham The Grange, Central Road, Morden, SM4 5PQ
London Southwark 230 Blackfriars Road, North Southwark, London, SE1 8NW
London Sutton Carew House, Wallington, SM6 0DX
London Tower Hamlets (Poplar) 100 Leman Street, E1 8GH
London Uxbridge Valiant House, 1 Park Road, UB8 1RW
London Walthamstow Units 9&10, 45 Selborne Walk, E17 7JR
London Waltham Forest Kestral House, Trinity Park, E4 8TD
London Wandsworth 7B-8B The Exchange, High Street, SW15 1TW
London Wembley 498 High Road, HA9 7BH
Luton 500 Capability Green, Luton, Bedfordshire, LU1 3LU
Maidstone Unit 2, Lower Boxley Road, Maidstone, Kent, ME14 2UU
Manchester (Central) 58 Mosley Street, Manchester, M2 3HZ
Manchester (Stretford) Arndale House, Stretford Mall, M32 9BD
Middlesbrough 27-33 Dundas Shopping Centre, TS1 1HR
Milton Keynes Phoenix House, Elder Gate, Milton Keynes, MK9 1AW
Newton Abbot 10 Courtenay Street, Newton Abbot, Devon, TQ12 2DT
Northampton Princess House, Cliftonville Road, Northampton, NN1 5AE
North Shields Kings Court, Royal Quays, NE29 6AR
Nuneaton Unit 2, Ropewalk, Chapel Street, Nuneaton, CV11 5TZ
Oldham Phoenix House, 46 Union Street, OL1 1BN
Oldham West Wing Ground and First Floor, Oldham Business Centre, University Way, Oldham, OL1 1BB
Peterborough Northminster House, PE1 1YN
Peterlee 56 Yoden Way, Castle Dene Shopping Centre, Peterlee, SR8 1AS
Plymouth Unit 1, Bretonside, PL4 OBG
Portsmouth 5a Edinburgh Road, Portsmouth, PO1 1DE
Preston Fishergate Shopping Centre, Preston, PR1 8HJ
Ramsgate Argyle Centre, York Street, CT11 9DS
Reading 121 Kings Road, RG1 3AH
Redditch Unit 82, Evesham Walk, Kingfisher Shopping Centre, Redditch, B97 4HA
Redruth Piran House, Nettles Hill, TR15 1SL
Rhyl 7 Bodfor Street, Rhyl, LL18 1AS
Rochdale 50a Market Way, Exchange Shopping Centre, Newgate, Rochdale, OL16 1EA
Romford Unit 1, Davidson Way, Romford, RM7 0AZ
Rotherham Unit 3a and 3b Phoenix Riverside, Sheffield Road, Rotherham, S60 1FL
St Albans Beauver House, 6 Bricket Road, St Albans, AL1 3JU
St Helens Gregson House, Central Street, St Helens, WA10 1UF
Scunthorpe 22-24 Southgate Mall, The Foundry Shopping Centre (Southgate), Scunthorpe, DN15 6SD
Sheffield Block 3, Pennine Five Campus Sheffield, S1 4BY
Shrewsbury 3rd Floor offices Princess House, 17-19 The Square, SY1 1YA
Southampton Frobisher House, Nelson Gate, Wyndham Place, Southampton, SO15 1GX
Southend 107 High Street, SS1 1NR
Southport Eastbank House, Eastbank Street, Southport, PR8 1HE
Stafford 30 Greengate Street, ST16 2QG
Stevenage Abel Smith House, Gunnels Wood Road, Stevenage, SG1 2ST
Stockport National House, 80-82 Wellington Road North, SK4 1HW
Stoke on Trent 1 Smithfield, ST1 3DR
Swansea Unit 7 Parc Tawe North, Swansea, SA1 2AA
Swindon 19 - 20 Canal Walk, SN1 1LD
Swinton 51/53 The Parade, Swinton Square Shopping Centre, M27 4BH
Telford Titan House, Euston Way, Telford, TF3 4LY
Thornaby (Stockton-on-Tees) Dunedin House, Columbia Drive, TS17 6BJ
Torquay Former Argos, 122-126 Union Street, Torquay, TQ2 5QB
Wakefield Waterfront Navigation Warehouse, Navigation Walk, Wakefield Waterfront, WF1 5RH
Walsall Unit 2a Crown Wharf, WS2 8LL
Walsall Unit 2b Crown Wharf, WS2 8LL
Watford Egale 2, 78 St Albans Road, WD17 1AF
West Bromwich 5 Lombard Street, West Bromwich, B70 8RT
Widnes Kingway House, Caldwell Road, Widnes, WA8 7EA
Wigan Mesnes House, Mesnes Street, Wigan, Greater Manchester, WN1 1QJ
Woking 6 Church Street West, GU21 6AZ
Wolverhampton (Unit 74-78) 7-10 Wulfrun Square, Wulfrun Centre, Wolverhampton, WV1 3HF
Worthing 105-109 Montague Street, Worthing, BN11 3BP
Wrexham 3-9 Hope Street, Wrexham, LL11 1BG
York 1st Floor, 11-17 Monkgate, York, YO31 7JZ

Find out how to contact Jobcentre Plus.

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WORKPLACE SUICIDES – While the hazards most often associated with workplace deaths in the U.S. construction industry – falling, being struck-by or crushed by equipment or other objects, or suffering electrocution are well-known – a recent study finds that another potential killer is taking lives at an alarming rate.

In 2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that men working in construction have one of the highest suicide rates compared to other industries. Their rate of suicide is about four times higher than the general population.

While the CDC continues its research to understand the disparity, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has formed a task force of industry partners, unions and educators to raise awareness of the types of stress that can push construction workers into depression and toward suicide. In addition to alerting stakeholders, the task force encourages industry employers to share and discuss available resources with their workers. The task force is calling on industry to take part in a weeklong Suicide Prevention Safety Stand-Down, Sept. 6-10, to raise awareness about the unique challenges construction workers face. The stand-down will coincide with National Suicide Prevention Month in September.

“Work-related stress can have severe impacts on mental health and without proper support may lead to substance abuse and even suicide,” stated Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Jim Frederick. “Workers in construction face many work-related stressors that may increase their risk factors for suicide, such as the uncertainty of seasonal work, demanding schedules and workplace injuries that are sometimes treated with opioids.”

The Suicide Prevention Safety Stand-Down started as a regional initiative in OSHA’s Kansas City and St. Louis, Missouri, offices with these task force members: Builders AssociationAssociated General Contractors of Missouri, University of Kansas, University of Iowa, Washington University, American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, local unions and several employers. More than 5,000 people participated in the 2020 Suicide Prevention Safety Stand-Down, and OSHA encourages others to join the effort in 2021.

“Like many workplace fatalities, suicides can be prevented,” said OSHA Acting Regional Administrator Billie Kizer in Kansas City, Missouri. “We encourage employers to use all available resources, familiarize themselves with the problem and learn to recognize the warning signs of depression. We also urge workers to seek help if they feel overwhelmed or overcome by a loss of hope.”

US Ambulance Service

Image: US Ambulance Service. 

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MEAT WORKERS - According to the BBC abattoirs, butchers and meat processors are set to employ prisoners and ex-inmates to help plug labour shortages.

Meat industry leaders held talks with the government on Monday to discuss options of how businesses could link up with prisons to fill vacancies.

The Association of Independent Meat Suppliers told the BBC the industry had about 14,000 job vacancies currently.

It said Covid, Brexit and perceptions over career paths had caused a looming "recruitment crisis".

Cool Hand Luke

Image: From the film Cool Hand Luke starring Paul Newman. 

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MILITARY PENSIONS - The Ministry of Defence (MOD) announced it would open talks with the Nepalese Embassy about Gurkus pensions. 

Former Gurkha servicemen have ended a 13-day hunger strike after the Government agreed to enter talks with the Nepalese Embassy over equal pensions for veterans.

The group had not eaten for almost a fortnight, with one 60-year-old admitted to hospital with heart problems in the early hours of Wednesday morning, before returning to his strike outside Downing Street.

The hunger strikers were part of a group of protesters calling for equal pensions for Gurkhas who retired before 1997 and are ineligible for a full UK Armed Forces pension.

Gurkha Warrior

Image: The Gurkhas not to be messed with. 

ABC Note: The Gurkhas have become renowned for their loyalty and bravery since they first served as part of the Indian army in British-ruled India in 1815. Some 200,000 Gurkhas fought alongside British troops in both world wars, as well as the conflicts in the Falklands, Iraq and Afghanistan.

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UNIVERSAL CREDIT CUT - In England, Scotland and Wales, the number of private rented households in receipt of Universal Credit with an entitlement to housing support as part of the payment has increased by almost 107% from 746,694 in February 2020 to 1,545,024 in February 2021.

As of February 2021, over 55% of these households (858,606) have a gap between their housing cost support and the rent they had to pay. 

  • The Work and Pensions Minister, Will Quince MP, has noted that in such cases the median shortfall is £100 a month. See https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2021-05-24/6183.
  • On the 19th July, responding to a written parliamentary question from the Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, Jonathan Reynolds MP, asking what assessment the DWP has made of the potential effect of removing the uplift to the universal credit standard allowance on rent arrears accrued by universal credit claimants, the Work and Pensions Minister, Will Quince MP, responded:

“No assessment has been made.”

How much your Universal Credit will be cut

The standard allowance of Universal Credit will change as follows under the following payment category scenarios:

  • The 2021 payment for those who are single and under 25 - will drop from £344 to £264
  • The 2021 payment for those who are single and 25 or over - will drop from £411.51 to £331.51
  • The 2021 payment for a couple who are both under 25 - will drop from £490.60 to £410.60 (that is a total not an amount for each person)
  • The 2021 payment for a couple who are both 25 or over - will drop from £596.58 to £516.58 (that is a total not an amount for each person)

Those amounts will remain in place until April 2022, when an inflation-based rise is set to be applied.

Other components of Universal Credit will stay the same.

So if you get extra for children, disabilities or caring for a severely disabled person, those amounts will be untouched for the rest of this financial year. These additional amounts are listed below.

Extra for children

Claimants can get additional amounts of Universal Credit if they have one or two children.

Mums have lost a court battle to try to remove the DWP's two-child limit so if you have three or more kids, you'll only get extra for these children if

  • they were born before April 6, 2017 when the two-child limit started
  • you were already claiming for three or more children before that date
  • there are special circumstances such as children being part of a multiple birth (twins, triplets, quadruplets, etc), if they were adopted, if you are not their parents but have an arrangement to care for them, or if they were conceived as a result of rape or an abusive relationship.

The amounts paid out are:

  • For your first child if they were born before April 6, 2017 - £282.50
  • For your first child if they were born on or after April 6, 2017 - £237.08
  • For your second child and any other eligible children - £237.08 per child
  • If you have a disabled or severely disabled child - £128.89 or £402.41
  • For childcare costs - up to 85 per cent of your costs (up to £646.35 for one child and £1,108.04 for 2 or more children)

ABC Note: The ABC is predicting a crisis of epic proportions when Universal Credit is cut by £20 a week in October. 

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OPINION - The Taliban wasted no time in overrunning Afghanistan as soon as the Americans announced they were packing up and leaving. Having put up virtually no resistance we are now being told that 20,000 Afghans could be heading for the UK, all who need clothing, feeding, and rehousing. Competing for resources that we are struggling to provide for our people. That is if you believe the governments' justification for making more welfare cuts and that it is not just a ploy to free up more money to give to the undeserving rich in the form of more tax cuts.  

How can Prime Minister Boris Johnson justify cutting benefits to taxpayers on the dole, whose work and effort mean they paid into the system sometimes for decades and who rightfully deserve to be paid adequate benefits? These are the people who worked to support others and who are now facing potential destitution, starvation, and misery due to these threatened Universal Credit cuts [the cancellation of the £20 uplift].  The real reason for the uplift was we suspect to pump money into a global economy that was on the verge of a major collapse and therefore deflation, where prices would fall and purchases would be postponed. This would explain why in the USA those in work but furloughed were paid more in welfare than they would have earned.

43% of those on Universal Credit in the UK are in work and even those fully unemployed still pay taxes such as VAT and Council Tax. 

Although UK citizens have empathy with those fleeing their country of origin [of course we do] however how long will that empathy last when these refugees start taking priority to get housing and claim benefits? If they had fought bravely and heroically to repel the Taliban and lost, one might have more sympathy. The Afghans had excellent equipment, far better than the Taliban - their military was well trained and well paid. What they didn’t have was the stomach or willingness to fight back.  Whose fault is that. 

Why should UK benefits claimants accept that the benefits they paid for should be cut when those who have paid nothing into the system will need to be fed, clothed, and rehoused by the British taxpayer?

There is a potential solution, Afghanistan’s financial reserves have been frozen by the US. That funding could be legitimately accessed and used to pay for benefits and support for those driven out of their country.  

Let’s take these reserves and give ‘Terry Taliban and the Mullahs’ an invoice for looking after their citizens and for all the military kit lost also paid for by the British and American taxpayer. President Biden was right, it was time to leave, but the execution and the withdrawal was badly managed. If Boris cuts social security benefits but finances all these refugees that could cause great ill feeling and foster anti-foreigner sentiment.  

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