This statistic is verging on the unbelievable....but it is not.

People who receive benefits haven’t fallen off the radar. Far from it. Are you suggesting they just carry on as they are, producing more feckless generations?

I feel uneasy with " these families". Its a bit like " refugees". I agree there can be generations of people who fall off the radar, have all sorts of issues, and have low expectations.

But if you want to look for scroungers and idleness, look further up the food chain.

It’s not just a matter of ‘encouraging’ people into work, how many employers would be willing to take a chance on someone who has been out of work for a very long time especially given Labour’s intention to make it more difficult to dismiss a new employee who isn’t up to the job? Given the choice between two candidates, one of whom had an unbroken record of work and the other had been living on benefits for a long time, who would you choose?

FriedGreenTomatoes2

theworriedwell

FriedGreenTomatoes2

And severe acne too! I know it can be ‘depressing’ our eldest daughter had it late teens and was called “pizza face’. On her Saturday job on the tills at Tesco several customers used to pass comment. But classing it as a ‘disability’? Oh come on.

Too many people expecting a hand out instead of a hand up.

It goes without saying that genuine disability should be recognised and assisted.

But this mess?
Someone’s having a laugh -and it’s not the taxpayer.

So what did you do to help your daughter?

Made a GP appointment who referred her to a dermatologist.
Who prescribed Roaccutane.

However, how is this conversation even relevant. .??

Well if she got roaccutane she didn't have the problem for long as it works really well. Maybe getting an appointment earlier would have helped. Poor girl. Not sure what that has to do with people with other conditions as not everything is as easily dealt with.

There are many people who genuinely need to receive benefits and as a tax payer I fully support them.
However there are also those who do not want to work and are very adept at manageing the system. These are the ones who the government need to weed out. Power to their elbow!

Cabbie21

Every case is individual. There are some sweeping generalisations being made.
A relative of mine had a number of health conditions, physical and mental, including panic attacks whereby she might ‘ freeze’ in the middle of a road. She had to wait four years to start the treatment she needed. Ten years later she is much better (relatively) but still not in work. I sincerely hope the new systems will help and support her to get back into work. One thing that will help hugely is that she will not need to worry about automatically losing her benefits just for trying to work.

👏👏

Barleyfields

Some would say:

CBA

What’s that?

Why do I need a cv when I can get benefits?

Rather stay at home.

They won’t let me starve.

Cynical, me?

No and those are the ones who really need a lot of encouragement, (big boot) those who can work should work!

FriedGreenTomatoes2

This explains much:

FACE-TO-FACE assessments for Britain’s main disability benefit have collapsed to less than 2 per cent since Labour took power amid concerns the welfare bill is spiralling out of control.

The architect of the Tories’ welfare reform warned a sharp drop in face-to-face assessments for those claiming Personal Independence Payment (PIP) since lockdown had left the system “open to abuse”, with remote assessments more likely to result in awards.

Official figures show more than 80 per cent of PIP assessments conducted before the pandemic were in person. This dropped to a record post-Covid low of less than 2 per cent in September last year, when just 1,270 of 74,000 assessments were carried out face-to-face.

We can be misled by number.
Do you suggest that in September 2024 that “official figures” (link please) that the 72,730 people NOT assessed face-to-face were rejected for PIP?
Or are you trying to suggest that they were all approved?

Ilovecheese

AuntieE

LovesBach

The Times today states that one in ten adults between 16 and 64 is claiming incapacity or sickness benefits. It's hard to see how the economy can sustain this level of payments. Does anyone else find this alarming?

Oh dear! Unless I have completely misunderstood you, you are more concerned with the economy than with the fact that a tenth of the working population is so seriously ill that they are claiming benefits.

You may also, be infering that these claimants are not actually ill, or incapacitated. I trust I am being unfair to you here, because only their doctors can know whether they are ill or not.

These days it is so hard to qualify for invalidity or sickness benefits that I am willing to bet that most of those claiming such benefits are too ill to work.

Thank you AuntieE: A decent, humane and intelligent post. Very refreshing.

I really cannot believe your post - just how nasty can you get?
Firstly, the headline surprised and shocked me for several reasons - and the main one was not economics. As the mother of a young person who had a chronic illness for many years, was unable to work, and consequently needed to be on benefits, I find your potential 'misunderstanding' hurtful in the extreme - I would be the last person to 'infer' that claimants are not ill. How did you manage to dredge that unpleasant thought up from my concern that so many are in need of support ? The bald facts are that the resources of any country are finite - and seemingly the number dependent upon benefits of one kind or another is at an all time high. This has to be considered - what would happen to the sick if the economy crashes? The unpleasant thoughts you have decided to post are in your head - and certainly not in mine.

Every case is individual. There are some sweeping generalisations being made.
A relative of mine had a number of health conditions, physical and mental, including panic attacks whereby she might ‘ freeze’ in the middle of a road. She had to wait four years to start the treatment she needed. Ten years later she is much better (relatively) but still not in work. I sincerely hope the new systems will help and support her to get back into work. One thing that will help hugely is that she will not need to worry about automatically losing her benefits just for trying to work.

How far away is that realistically though Galaxy? Given that there has been a need for support for some families over many centuries, I can’t see that aspiration ever being achievable.

The point is if it was done well eventually the need would be much less. I am one of those middle class professionals casdon

Casdon

Who do you think is going to provide the backbone of support systems to help people get back to work if it isn’t professionals Galaxy?

It will still be the same for at least another generation or two

We’ve always worked and struggled alongside caring for our child with a severe disability and I’ve seen how others have benefitted from just not working but taking in a care tile as paid via benefits. I don’t judge these people though. I’ve just always believed our child when an adult had a choice to live their own life. Of course that costs lots of money

I’m presuming we are not talking about us and these kind of people though

Who do you think is going to provide the backbone of support systems to help people get back to work if it isn’t professionals Galaxy?

These families are the ones that every middle class professional in social care could tell you about. Perhaps that's the issue. If we try and actually improve their lives by providing structure, work, etc then those middle class professionals night not be needed.

AuntieE

LovesBach

The Times today states that one in ten adults between 16 and 64 is claiming incapacity or sickness benefits. It's hard to see how the economy can sustain this level of payments. Does anyone else find this alarming?

Oh dear! Unless I have completely misunderstood you, you are more concerned with the economy than with the fact that a tenth of the working population is so seriously ill that they are claiming benefits.

You may also, be infering that these claimants are not actually ill, or incapacitated. I trust I am being unfair to you here, because only their doctors can know whether they are ill or not.

These days it is so hard to qualify for invalidity or sickness benefits that I am willing to bet that most of those claiming such benefits are too ill to work.

Thank you AuntieE: A decent, humane and intelligent post. Very refreshing.

This will be my brother too. It will be such a relief and peace of mind for him.

Casdon

One thing Liz Kendall announced which I was very pleased to hear was that ‘she wants to ensure that those on universal credit with the “most severe disabilities and health conditions that will never improve” won’t be reassessed “to give them the confidence and dignity they deserve’. That is really good news, I have never agreed with hounding them.

That will be my adult child. Unfortunately they were forced off ESA

Families who have no routine or structure, ever. They don’t have to get up and work and imo leads to be being dysfunctional long term.

I have an adult child with a severe disability who needs to rely on benefits fwiw. They still strive on routine

I’m no hypocrite

Routine would be good for a lot of these families

" these families" Who are they?

theworriedwell

FriedGreenTomatoes2

And severe acne too! I know it can be ‘depressing’ our eldest daughter had it late teens and was called “pizza face’. On her Saturday job on the tills at Tesco several customers used to pass comment. But classing it as a ‘disability’? Oh come on.

Too many people expecting a hand out instead of a hand up.

It goes without saying that genuine disability should be recognised and assisted.

But this mess?
Someone’s having a laugh -and it’s not the taxpayer.

So what did you do to help your daughter?

Made a GP appointment who referred her to a dermatologist.
Who prescribed Roaccutane.

However, how is this conversation even relevant. .??

wibblywobblywobblebottom

STFU.

“Shut the F**k Up”?

Charming.
Not.

I agree Jane.

A very sensible perspective valdavi.