Iain Duncan Smith has resigned

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IDS voting record on benefits, just so we can be sure that he voted for all the cuts until the weekend.

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Shadow minister for disabilities says this about his resignation. She does not believe his reasons.

All my birthdays have come at once , can`t wait to listen to SCamerons `speech` which I have recorded so I can rewind the good bits lol

I have done the same f77

I did as well because my grandson was still here when he started, and my grandson talks over it, asking questions all the time. You answer one question and miss the next bit.
I noticed Cameron seemed to be even redder than usual.

One MP tweeted that Cameron was visibly shaking.

pbs.twimg.com/media/Cd_f6mSWIAQK-Hu.jpg

This is where George and IDS have got to.

Wow Jen, brilliant

Even more brilliant, and nothing to do with IDS, but the Lords have just voted for the government to allow 3,000 unaccompanied children to migrate to the UK as soon as possible.

I think the Lords is completely wrong, except when it does things like this.

They do display empathy and seem to have a sense of fairness, like refusing to go along with the rotten governments attempt at altering the union fees. A Tory Lord stood up and said he couldn't allow such a disastrous thing to happen to one of the great parliamentary parties of the U.K.

www.theguardian.com/business/2016/mar/21/george-osborne-budget-poorest-families-ifs-iain-duncan-smith-benefit-cuts

The IFS has backed IDS claims over the unfairness of the budget.

Did anyone see Nicky Morgan on Newsnight?
I nearly felt sorry for her, having to admit that she had not seen the Resolution Foundation's charts showing that the poorest lose the most.
She was told she should have seen them, and if not, was she doing her job properly.
Of course, she could have been lying!

I'd love to know what is going on.
Nicky Morgan used to work for George Osborne (5th most senior minister in the treasury)
Morgan gets interesting new hairstyle
Osborne makes major education announcement in the budget.
Morgan scuppers budget same night on BBCQT
IDS resigns

Why was the education announcement in the budget? Attempt to appear Prime Ministerial by Osborne? Mass academisation a secret plot to ensure no school has enough money to do any building projects for foreseeable future?
Why did she say that in QT - she is not an innocent who does not know the score?
Who, now, is a lifelong enemy of NM????

Most people I would think, but don't forget the invisible strings and the puppet master - Gove

Hmm. She's not in the euro-sceptic camp though.

indy100.independent.co.uk/article/evan-davis-showed-nicky-morgan-a-graph-on-newsnight-and-things-got-really-awkward--byaBo7gJgW

This is the Nicky Morgan interview. She has repeated lots of it since then.
I was just looking through some papers before recycling them, and I noticed that the IFS report had been reported in the papers last Friday.
You'd think that someone would have told her before Monday if she was going to be the spokesperson for face-saving.

I think "modern compassionate conservatism" means "We have a lot of compassion for the rich, because they have to pay more than their fair share of taxes."

That's all she kept warbling about

Oh dear what grumpy and negative thoughts invading your day so early in the morning. Here's some to lighten the SAD effect.

Modern conservatism means describing fleeing refugees as swarming .

Explaining we cannot take many refugees because they would lower our standard if living.

Dismissing a group of refugees as a bunch.

Stopping all little ones from having the meningitis jab, too costly, yet knowing the wealthy can buy it privately so protect their children .

Doubling the number of homeless in five years.

Causing disabled people to have to protest against savage cuts in their allowances .

Lower tax for the wealthy

The problem is, Jess, she got that wrong.
Their fair share of taxes should be a lot higher as they take a much bigger proportion of the money.
In 2013 you needed over £650,000 to be in the top 1%.
Now they are all millionaires.

www.disabilitynewsservice.com/duncan-smith-and-grayling-must-face-criminal-probe-over-wca-deaths/

speye.wordpress.com/2016/04/12/universal-credit-a-24-billion-per-year-increase-in-welfare/

Do you think this is why he resigned? He'd just discovered his own black hole?

Honestly everything this government touches turns to dust, it has got to be the least competent government ever. 32 U turns to date apart from all the other abject failures.

Strangely enough, last week I was just talking about UC to another DWP escapee. We were talking about the main benefits being merged into UC all being 'gateway' benefits and how on earth was the IT system going to cope. The answer is it doesn't. Like every other similar change, the development of the UC IT system has been a disaster from the start - and the reason why UC is so far behind schedule. The benefits system is still far too complicated.

Trouble is I don't think the information mentioned in dj's link is all correct. UC is a working age benefit, so the 'unclaimed benefits' data should not include pensions information. Also, some high value additions (premiums) will be cut as part of the transfer process. Remember that the maximum amount of benefit payable is being reduced too. I think the writer makes a good point, but it is not as straightforward as he makes out.

The pensions data is on top of the headline figure of £24 billion.
The chart is from the DWP papers themselves. They put the pension information in as if it was a welfare benefit.

speye.wordpress.com/2015/06/25/66-million-per-day-24-billion-per-yearin-welfare-goes-unclaimed/

This is the government information.

Whatever it is, it's a pretty big hole, as big as the NHS one.