Kilburn Unemployed Workers Group

Friday, 24 June 2016

Tony Cox trial and the EU referendum: Whose 'evidence'? Whose 'verdict'? Whose politics? Whose 'voting rights'

By Dude Swheatie of Kwug

Tony Cox' supporters rolled up outside the court in Dundee on his trial day

The report from Scottish Unemployed Workers Network (SUWN) — Class 'Justice' —regarding Tony Cox' trial yesterday does not make joyous reading for KUWG members (Kwuggies) and welfare advocates everywhere:

The sheriff (judge) presiding in the case found Tony 'guilty' of 'threatening behaviour' towards the staff of privatised disability assessment company Maximus, acknowledging in his verdict that it all boiled down to whose evidence he preferred despite contradictions in the evidence provided by Tony's accusers.

It would also seem — at least according to this blogger's perception of things —that regarding the Sheriff's apparent contempt for the evidence available from the vulnerable woman Tony attempted to accompany to her Work Capability Assessment, he sided with the view that as the taxpayer-funded privatised assessor, Maximus and its staff knew what was best for the vulnerable person Tony was attempting to support. And it did not matter one jot what the vulnerable person herself had to say in response to very loaded questions from the judge.(1)

Loaded questions betray one's prejudices, and that is a clear basis of rapport between Sheriff Griffiths and what MaximusUK likes to represent its 'Eligibility Support' [sic] as.

Maximus | United Kingdom: Eligibility Support — "Processing eligibility support claims quickly and efficiently" [sic]

Whose 'evidence'? Whose 'verdict'? Whose politics? Whose 'voting rights'? And allegiance to who and to what?

The SUWN blog post reports on an 'in our experience' framework regarding MaximusUK and its 'output' or the fruits by which Maximus and Tony shall be comparatively 'known' and omits reference to, say, Labour MP Louise Haigh's evidence regarding the 'corporate outsourcing giant's "track record, ethics and even criminal behaviour of Maximus in delivering public contracts in the US" before being appointed to replace Atos as WCA company of Conservative Government choice. Haigh has said of MaximusUK 'Eligibility Support' output on the basis of her publicly funded casework:

"There seems to be an alarming trend of cases being rejected based on factual errors or even — I hesitate to say this — falsification.

"I have had several cases of people telling me that their assessment report bears absolutely no relation to the assessment that they experienced with Maximus or Atos [the company that it took over running of Work Capability Assessments (WCA's) from].

“One or two cases could be dismissed as an honest mistake, but the situation appears to reveal a disconcerting pattern of behaviour that indicates that the trade-off between cost-cutting and profit maximisation is being felt by very vulnerable people.”(3)

This blogger would say that MaximusUK's claims in general are about as valid as those of the Vote Leave campaign regarding how much money could be re-allocated to the NHS by Britain leaving the European Union. Now that Britain has apparently voted to leave the EU, we shall probably see what truth there is regarding such claims, and what the real public spending priorities of those left in charge will be.

Regarding the downfall of David Cameron resulting from the Vote Leave decision of those who were deemed 'eligible' to vote in that referendum — whatever their reasoning for that decision — there will be new 'leadership' in Downing Street. I suppose that that 'leadership' will reward its BBC News supporters for all their 'services to democracy' in favouring Vote Leave propaganda during that referendum.

As a Green Party member, I shudder regarding the diminishing prospects for furthering of equalities legislation and democracy that EU membership has brought us. Further, to combat such international issues as climate change, terrorism, tax evasion, imbalances of economic power, international disputes, etc, UK involvement in EU cooperation is essential and will be tragically absent

Kilburn Unemployed (KUWG) members are of various political parties and varying positions regarding EU membership. Some though have had no say in this referendum because of their nationality not being British.

One of the huge advantages that birthright British citizens have over those wishing to claim British citizenship is that they do not have to 'pledge allegiance to the Crown'. As someone who very much prefers monarchy and finds the kowtowing to court decisions such as the 'Tony Cox is guilty despite absence of CCTV evidence' that would 'reward' Tony with a lighter sentence to the detriment of welfare advocates everywhere.

I regard such directives as worthy of contempt rather than allegiance. (I have greater 'allegiance' to my non-UK citizen friends and comrades in Kwug than I have for a birthright publicly funded family of benefit claimant royalty and the courts operating in its name that make some very dodgy decisions.) What do you reckon?

Link addresses

Taxpayers Against Poverty: No change in TAP policy outside the EU

It seems that those who did have voting rights in the UK's EU referendum and excercised those voting rights in the extremely limited two option format of the ballot paper preferred for Britain to leave the EU.

In response Revd Paul Nicolson as Chairperson of Taxpayers Against Poverty has issued this announcement:

Dear All
There is no change in TAP policy in or out of the EU. We will continue to fight for "No citizen without an affordable home and an adequate income in work or unemployment." We of course mean citizens of all races, faiths and languages who understand the suffering of migrants.
There will probably be a Human Rights Bill in which case we will be lobbying Parliament. Our objects are based on the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights — see About TAP. (1) (2)
TAP needs as much support as you can muster. (3)
All good wishes
Paul

from the Reverend Paul NicolsonTaxpayers Against PovertyNo citizen without an affordable home and an adequate income in work or unemployment.
93 Campbell Road, Tottenham, London N17 0BF, 0208 3765455, 07961 177889, https://www.facebook.com/Taxpayers-Against-Poverty-299911526728884/https://twitter.com/taxpayers_a_p www.taxpayersagainstpoverty.org.uk, www.z2k.org, www.prohousingalliance.com

Linked addresses

Thursday, 23 June 2016

Kilburn Unemployed members sing the praises of Tony Cox and welfare advocates everywhere

We sang:

Tony! Tony Cox!Tony! Tony rocks!'Ficialdom [officialdom] quakes in its bootsWhen you have supports!

We were determined to follow through on our show of solidarity for Tony Cox — on trial on trumped up charges in Dundee — after weather and travel related problems scuppered our outdoor demonstration at Kilburn Jobcentre today.

So one of us brought along his baritone ukulele and own composition song 'A Song for Tony Cox' and taught it to others at the end of our weekly business meeting in which we helped vulnerable people with their casework. (Like our early morning demo, our afternoon meeting attendance was severely hit by the weather and other disruptions. One member's home was flooded, too!)

Officialdom has put Tony up on the trumped up charge of 'grooming a vulnerable person'. The reality is that the Department for Work and Pensions and its privatised subcontractors would rather keep such people in the dark about their rights, and so it is best for welfare advocacy organisations to be proactive. The motto or golden rule of the Kilburn Unemployed Workers Group is, "Never attend anywhere official alone."

The act of accompanying someone at such meetings might be described as a 'pre-emptive first strike' against some of the dirty tricks that the DWP and its cronies including G4S security guards get up to.

Kilburn Unemployed blog posts referring to Tony Cox (1)

Link address

http://kilburnunemployed.blogspot.co.uk/search?q="Tony+Cox"

Thurs 23 June Kilburn Jcp demo for Tony Cox and welfare advocacy rained off

The blog administrator gives belated apologies for cancellation of today's much publicised Kilburn demo in support of Tony Cox and welfare advocates everywhere.

This was the sequence of events for the morning from the blog administrator's point of view:

Breakfasted and toileted from about 08:00. While still recovering from recent bout of debilitating illness, felt just about okay for attending while the weather seemed extremely dodgy
Turned mobile on about 08:30 to check for any incoming SMS [text messages]. (Mobile turned off most of the time when not in use to save very weak battery power of supplied battery for Doro EasyPhone.) No messages received by departure time
Departed 09:05, forgetting to pick up mobile and encountered two train cancellations plus further 10 minute delay
Arrived Kilburn Jcp about 10:00, seeing no Kwuggies present but weather settled into easing off from raining, and remained a further 15 minutes with no sign of anyone else turning up for demo
Arrived home much later to discover SMS on mobile stating: "Due to rain and thunder, leafleting called off. Don't know if you could mention it on blog?"

Well, it is now mentioned, albeit very belatedly with the blog administrator's apologies.

And another Kwuggie had emailed Scottish Unemployed Workers Network:

Dear SUWN,
Regrettably, the stormy wet weather has forced us to cancel our support for Tony Cox. We shall not be outside Kilburn JCP this morning but we are certainly thinking of him.
We wish Tony and SUWN very good luck!

Conclusion

Global warming creates more storms and upsets; yet one of its worst aspects is its precarity, making weather forecasting much more unreliable.

It would seem therefore to this blog administrator that activist groups need to consider investing in weather gear and weather-resistant leaflets.

Tuesday, 21 June 2016

Internet searchers like welfare advocacy and Tony Cox — DWP clearly do not!

By Dude Swheatie of Kwug

In his 2009 speech to Green Party Trade Union group fringe, Peter Allen (Advice Worker and a member of UNISON) advocated Green Party members holding something like 'advice surgeries' for economically vulnerable people, to help inform them of their rights. (Post title Welfare Rights and Advice, Friday 27 March 2009 (1) Further video parts at that Green Party Trade Union Group blog post, which is on the old Green Party Trade Union Group blog. The videoing was done by Peter Murry [no 'a' in the spelling of his surname] of Neasden.)

Since then, against a backdrop of ever greater Department for Work & Pensions (DWP) nastiness against benefit claimants, there has been an upsurge of self-help groups offering advice and advocacy to benefit claimants and others. These include the Kilburn Unemployed Workers Group (KUWG) in North London and the Scottish Unemployed Workers Network (SUWN). (2) (3) The advertising 'strap line' of the Kilburn Unemployed Workers Group is, "Never attend anywhere official alone," and that imperative has certainly helped validate claimant's vulnerability when they attend disability benefit assessments. KUWG is affectionately known as 'Kwug' and its caseworkers — through diligent persistence and becoming informed — have helped people get the benefits to which they are entitled.

Too often, the stage at which people have come to Kwug with their cases have already been turned down for the disability benefit for which they have applied — and they have not been accompanied in their original benefit assessment 'medical', nor received proper advice about what documentation to supply in making their claim. The more 'lead time' between their appeal to a Kwug meeting for assistance and their assessment or tribunal, the greater their chances of a successful outcome, generally. Partly for that reason, Kwug meets every Thursday a community centre that is very accessible.

What happened to state benefits after someone who did not even do a Google search for 'Incapacity Benefit test' declared the majority of Incapacity Benefit claimants bogus?

Tony Blair appointee 'welfare reform guru' and former investment banker David Freud's February 2008 ill-informed and badly researched statements about 'benefit fraud' seem to have signposted the 'norms' by which the DWP cuts benefits by cutting the number of disability benefit claimants and more perceived to be 'legitimate'. Then head of Child Poverty Action Group Kate Green — now a Labour MP — observed that Freud had clearly not done a Google search on 'Incapacity Benefit test'.(4) He is now installed in the House of Lords as Conservative Welfare Reform Minister and benefits sanctions often hit very vulnerable people who are not only not fit for work, but also unfit for the Jobseekers Allowance 'conditionality' that being turned down for Employment & Support Allowance has forced them into.(5)

The conditionality attached to 'entitlement' for benefits is now extremely hard and demeaning as blogger and NUJ member Kate Belgrave | 'Talking with people dealing with public sector cuts' has discovered through talking to and accompanying benefit claimants.(6) The extent of benefit sanctions and the way that they have been administered without the decision maker facing the claimant have been highlighted respectively by U. Glasgow Law Professor Dr David Webster and by Kate Belgrave.(7) (8) "Those who give the order seldom see the mess it makes" and the DWP clearly do not want the public to know that mess and how it was caused.(9)

DWP on the hunt for much needed welfare advocates — and not to give them paid work doing what they do so well!

Now, it is not just claimants as claimants that the DWP is attacking, it is also the advocates of DWP claimants that they are attacking, as evidenced in the case of Tony Cox of the SUWN, as outlined at The Crown versus Tony Cox — and welfare activists everywhere: Part 2, Round 1.(10) Observing and listening to Tony Cox's input at a meeting served as part of screenwriter Paul Laverty's research for Cannes Film Festival Palme D'Or winning film 'I Daniel Blake', directed by Ken Loach.(11) (12)

I believe I am not suited to doing the direct advocacy stuff, but have empathy in talking to fellow claimants and an understanding of what they are subjected to. That and Internet and writing skills help me blog while I have never been successful at jobsearch enough to get more than 'precarious' positions from the time I became a jobseeker in 1977 till the time I claimed ESA in early 2009 — which I later won through tribunal in December 2009. The extent of 'precarity' in people's socio-economic status has now become so widespread that Prof. Guy Standing has declared 'the precariat' a 'new dangerous class'.(13)

As a jobseeker with an invisible disability, I was all-too-frequently timed out of what 'supports' were available to disabled jobseekers even before these much harsher times. Through all those years of diligent jobsearch and skill building — largely without official support and much official hindrance by ignorant government employees — my sum total of waged employment amounted to a grand total of 17 months, the last 11 months of which was so part time that I was still claiming Jobseekers Allowance and submitting part-time earnings forms at the jobcentre at my fortnightly signing sessions. The stinginess of the '£5 earnings disregard' badly impacted on me in those 11 months.(14) Stress led to weakening of my immune system to the point that I suffered cellulitis in my legs and became increasingly forgetful at just 52 years old.(15) (16)

As a result of Kilburn Unemployed blogging, I have been able to observe a huge interest in the case of Tony Cox. Since I uploaded a blog post on Thursday 17 June in the evening about Tony Cox and welfare advocacy, that blog post has attracted enough viewings to make it the #5 in the 'All Time (May 2010 to June 2016) Most Viewed' blog posts of the Kilburn Unemployed blog.(17)

Posts

Entry	Pageviews
KUWG with Simon of Occupy Highlight What Goes on a... 1 Apr 2014	3285
Unite Community-sponsored Inequality Bus Tour goes... 23 Apr 2014, 2 comments	1026
Harlesden Neighbourhood Forum Launch - Weds 15 Apr... 3 Apr 2015	690
12 month investigation exposes stark reality faced... 4 Feb 2014	574
Roll up at Kilburn Jcp on Thurs 23 June, 09:45 to ... 17 Jun 2016	446
What councils don't tell you about the enforcement... 20 Mar 2013	443
Benefits sanctioned? Take mass action! Write your ... 14 Nov 2014	405
Our Work Capability Reassessment Workshop 11 Nov 2011	353
High Court challenge vs WCA, Monday 21 October 201... 21 Oct 2013	351
The Council Tax scandal 12 May 2015	297

The price of liberty is constant vigilance!

Amendment to the above regarding sourcing of viewings for

The presupposition of the author is at fault in identifying the source of viewings for Roll up at Kilburn Jcp on Thurs 23 June, 09:45 to 10:45 in support of Tony Cox and welfare activists everywhere as based on Internet searches. Internet searches have indeed sourced most of the viewings for Kilburn Unemployed blog posts in the previous six years of this blog, as this 'All Time Stats' copy and paste illustrates:

Traffic Sources (May 2010 to June 2016)

Entry	Pageviews
https://www.google.co.uk/	3455
http://kilburnunemployed.blogspot.com/	1030
http://www.vampirestat.com	405

A look at the viewing sources for the blog as a whole reveals a break in that trend not only for the past week but also for the past month:

Traffic Sources (24 May 2016 to June 2016)

Entry	Pageviews
http://m.facebook.com/	325
https://www.google.co.uk/	96
http://kilburnunemployed.blogspot.com/	61

That revelation, however, does not invalidate the importance of supporting Tony Cox and welfare advocates everywhere. There has been a huge take up of viewings from one Facebook source.

Monday, 20 June 2016

BBC News reportage of the EU referendum vs its reportage of the Housing and Planning Bill 2016

A Google search of items related to the "EU referendum" on the BBC News website reveals 1,430,000 results at present:

About 1,430,000 results (0.98 seconds) (1)

A Google search of items related to 'housing' on the BBC News website reveals just 380,000 results:

About 380,000 results (0.64 seconds) (2)

A Google search of items related to "housing bill" 2016 reveals just 212 resuls:

About 212 results (0.63 seconds) (3)

A major thrust of the Vote Leave / 'Brexit' camp in this EU referendum has been that laws made 'in Brussels' have little or no scrutiny from within the UK. Yet if "democracy presupposes knowledge" has the BBC's focus on the EU referendum to the virtual exclusion of the Housing & Planning Bill 2016 contributed to a stifling of debate about its contents prior to the passing into UK law of the Housing & Planning Act 2016 last week?

The EU has brought some measure of Proportional Representation to UK politics. Has the debate about EU referendum matters obscured mainstream public debate about the Housing & Planning Bill 2016 to the point that it has been passed against the interests of vulnerable people by a very lopsided 'winner takes all' lopsided Parliament that was elected by a 'first past the post system' that the EU did not impose upon us?

And has the British Broadcasting Corporation's bias eclipsed potential scrutiny of those already marginalised by a diet of 'home owner TV'?

Links — note: results are likely to vary through time; your results from clicking these links are likely to differ depending on when you do the searching

Evictions and vulnerable people — a coroner's court case in point

In his address to London Housing Marchers at Hyde Park Corner on Saturday 18 June 2016, Revd Paul Nicolson of Taxpayers Against Poverty made use of the word 'vulnerable' four times — twice in connection with the word 'people', once in connection with the word 'humanity', and once in connection with the word 'circumstances'.

The encore below of a Kilburn Unemployed blog post from August 2015. Nygell Firminger of South Kilburn's circumstances included:

sanction by Kilburn Jobcentre
exorbitant interest rates charged by legalised loan sharks for 'high risk lenders
resultant rent arrears even while his benefits had been restored
eviction by Genesis Housing Association despite his attempted negotiations with them toward resolving his rent arrears
bailiffs not allowing him time to pick up his medication before they booted him out and
a 'group interview' at Kilburn Jcp

Nygell broke back into the flat that he had been evicted from and committed suicide the day before the 'group interview' at Kilburn Jcp.

His suicide occurred in the first week of April 2012, the same week that the Welfare Reform Act 2016 was passed by Parliament — heralding burgeoning benefit sanctions. The initial coroner's hearing into his case took place in November 2012 but had to be adjourned to 10 July 2013 when the following 'Rule 43' was passed by the North London Coroner.

North London Coroner: vulnerable person took his own life as a direct consequence of his being evicted by Genesis HA

North London Coroner's Court Letterhead

Page 1 of the Rule 43 regarding the death of an ex-Genesis HA tenant

I am required under the terms of Rule 43 of the Coroners (Amendment) Rules 2008 to report to:
Claire Murdock,
Chief Executive,
Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust,
Stephenson House
75 Hampstead Road
London NW1 2PL

And following the inquest touching the death of Nigel* Firminger heard before Coroner Andrew Walker at The Coroners Court sitting at Barnet on the 10th day of July 2013** and having heard evidence the Coroner had found that (b) the evidence gives rise to a concern that circumstances creating a risk of other deaths will occur, or will continue to exist in the future and

(c) In the Coroner's opinion, action should be taken to prevent the occurence or continuation of such circumstances, or to eliminate or reduce the risk of death created by such circumstances,

the coroner may report the circumstances to a person who the coroner believes may have power to take such action.

The Circumstances

On the second of April 2012, Nigel Patrick Firminger was found at his former home having taken his own life as a direct consequence of his being evicted and the effect that the eviction had on his mental health.

Mr Firminger was suffering from a mental health issues that were not known by the organisation providing his accommodation or the court dealing with the eviction.

It is against this background that H M Coroner begs to report that:

Consideration to be given to:-

A form that may be filled in by the staff conducting an assessment that the patient can take away with them that identifies that the person is to be considered vulnerable that can be passed to other agencies such as those providing accommodation.

Your attention is drawn to the following provisions:

Response to report under rule 43

Page 2 of the Rule 43 regarding the death of an ex-Genesis HA tenant

43A, —(1) A person to whom a coroner sends a report under rule 43(1) must give the coroner a written response to the report containing—

(a) details of any action that has been taken or which it is proposed will be taken whether in response to the report or otherwise; or

(b) an explanation as to why no action is proposed

within the period of 56 days beginning with the day on which the report is sent.

Extension of time

43B. A coroner may extend the period of 56 days mentioned in rule 43A(1) (even if an application for extension is made after the time for compliance has expired).

Signed this the 25th day of July 2013
(Coroner's signature and stamp)
by Coroner Adrew Walker

Notes

* The coroner's spelling of Nygell's forename as 'Nigel' is as presented on the Rule 43 document, and differs from the 'Nygell' spelling given on the cremation service programme from September 2012.
** This was an adjourned hearing. The original November 2012 hearing was adjourned because, following KUWG's presentation of a leaflet outlining the circumstances leading to Nygell's death and the fact that Nygell's relatives were unable to attend on that occasion, the Coroner had declared that "new evidence" had come to light.

Benefits sanctioned? Take mass action!

Commenting on Blog Contents

Comments are approved unless abusive, obscene, completely off the subject, disguised advertising or libellous. Publication of a comment does not imply that the blog administrator or KUWG agree with it.

Please note if I respond to comments it is in my Google log in — never 'Anonymous'

Commenters cause less confusion when they use their own names or pen names. A host of 'Anons' can give very mixed messages. Even if you use the technically easier 'Anonymous' button to make a comment you can still put your name at the end.

How to post a comment on a blogspot blog piece.

Contact us:

Facebook: Kilburn Unemployed Workers Group

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KUWG1

Telephone: 07724 843 973

Meetings: 3pm - 5:30pm
Thursdays, Kingsgate Community Centre
107 Kingsgate Road, London, NW6 2JH

Meeting structure

Helping you feel at home: We meet weekly in the Small Hall at KingsgateCC and start gathering from 3pm, attempting to start the meetings at about 3:15pm and definitely before 3:30pm.

Bring and share refreshments are included. We are not like the 'No eating or drinking on the premises' jobcentre.

The formal meetings start with firstname and what benefit we are on or a one-liner about what brings us to KUWG. (Pensioners and other allies welcome.)

We then ask for casework from those present, arrange who will help with what case, and go onto discussing campaigning leafleting and such outreach activities. We also arrange who will do the chairing or facilitating and note-taking for the following week. Rotating these roles helps minimise the risk of being dominated by one person and helps us build our skills as we share the workload.

Meetings actually finish at about 5:20pm to allow for putting tables and chairs back and leaving the kitchen facilities ready for the next group.

KUWG on Twitter