Polisticks updates - 15th Sept 2017

This week we found out  that even George 'Revenge' Osborne has possibly suffered the consequences of austerity - he's run out of alphabites and turkey twizzlers and is apparently now intending to restock his freezer supplies with bags of chopped up Theresa May. These are not the thoughts of a sane man. There's nothing wrong with alphabites and turkey twizzlers.

Not content with contributing to the death and suffering of vulnerable individuals in the UK, Liam Fox and Michael Fallon attended the Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) arms fair in London with the hope that they can extend death and suffering across the world. Let's "spread our wings after Brexit" Michael Fallon gleefully stated. No, Michael Fallon - let's stop arming destruction, and the killing of innocent civilians, for tainted cash. How about we spread support, send aid, and show compassion, to those in war-torn countries instead?

Hurricane Irma hit the Caribbean earlier this week causing widespread destruction across Islands. However, UK offshore Tax Pirates have already stashed their cash and it's unlikely they'll be made to dig deep for any local relief efforts anytime soon. 

The DWP admitted sanctioning people if they were unwilling to take a zero-hours contract. Zero-hours contracts lead to low productivity, high insecurity and an inability to pay the bills. A zero-hours contract is not 'employment', it is a form of exploitation. Figures proudly cited by the government in relation to numbers of people now in 'work' are intentionally misleading. 

Mr Rees-Mogg claimed the rise in the use of food banks is "rather uplifting". Given his 'pick-a-mix' approach on Catholicism, perhaps he might want to consider this  quote from Pope John Paul II in 1998 (picked out here just for him): "The Church continually combats all forms of poverty, because as Mother she is concerned that each and every person be able to live fully in dignity as a child of God." If Nanny is free, perhaps she could take Mr Rees-Mogg to visit volunteers, who challenged him to work a shift at their food bank, to see just how "uplifted" and dignified people left behind by his support of his party's policies really are. 

Finally, the pay cap on public workers looks as though it will be lifted (thanks to help from the DUP). Owing to the potential for further embarrassment, Tory Whips instructed their MPs not to bother attending Parliament for any upcoming opposition vote. Theresa May and her MPs have a responsibility to the general public to take their job seriously. Every vote matters. On all issues. If MPs don't turn up without good reason they should not be paid. A little like a zero-hours contract approach (but with a lot more perks)...

Sweeping evidence under the carpet is not a well-kept House

This government has repeatedly ignored evidence of failed policies, and regularly hide (loose/deny the existence of) reports that are critical of their strategies.

Members of the public should not have to fight to access assessments and reports. Our MPs work for us. All Freedom of Information requests should be respected, and not challenged in court. 

There will always be challenges, and not all policies will succeed. It is the responsibility of our government to identify any problems, and to act on data and expert advice, moving forward. Sweeping reports under the carpet just results in an even bigger mess.

Welcome back Theresa May-here's what you've missed...

I hope you had an excellent walking holiday in Italy Theresa May. I've compiled a short guide to help explain some of the recent developments for you when you get back to work later this week:

1. Your Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, requested a private bathroom in his office at the cost of £44,000 to the taxpayer. The many NHS patients who have been left on trolleys in hospital corridors will surely understand his need for privacy. "Let's encourage cyclists!" he eagerly declared (in a bizarre bid to swerve any criticism regarding austerity).

2. The Department of Health also came under further criticism for the rapid 'fire-sale' of NHS land. Analysis for Labour showed that one fifth of the plots are still in use and, importantly, there are no details for of over half the area (1332 hectares) up-for-grabs owing to "sensitivity" issues. I'm afraid the 'cat is out of the bag' on this one Theresa May, as the saying goes... 



3. The Department for Work & Pensions (DWP) has been doing an excellent job continuing to bully the disabled, workers and pensioners. 


 4. An update on the continued position of austerity on the public sector is as follows:

a. NHS: underfunded; understaffed; near breaking point.

b. Education: underfunded; understaffed; near breaking point.

c. Fire Servies: underfunded; understaffed; near breaking point.

d. Prison services: underfunded; understaffed; near breaking point.

e. Job Centres: underfunded; understaffed; near breaking point.

5. Progress on Brexit has been limited. 

6. Jacob Rees-Mogg (the super-rich one who thinks it's appropriate to waste parliament's time by 'filibustering', and who received £7.6 million pounds from the Chancellor to repair his wife's 350-room ancestral home despite voting for further £30-a-week disability cuts and for the bedroom tax) has been discussing a potential leadership bid. He's now the frontrunner to take over as Tory leader, and he has friends in high places...

 7. Jeremy Corbyn has been on the march with his Many taking aim at marginal seats, and also helping to carry pushchairs up steps. 

8. Finally, Donald Trump and Kim Jong-Un have been threatening to nuke each other, and Boris Johnson (as your chosen Foreign Secretary) has rather clumsily entered the fray. You might want to visit your friend Donald Trump soon. If you hold both his hands this time, he won't be able to press that red button...

Welcome back Theresa May. It looks like you're going to be busy...

Downward spiral of the DWP - how low will they go?

The DWP (Department for Work and Pensions) are using taxpayer's money to appeal against a decision made by the Information Commissioners Office (ICO). This follows an earlier Freedom of Information (FOI) request relating to deaths after Work Capability Assessments (WCA) judged individuals 'fit for work'. After initially denying even holding the information, the DWP then claimed that releasing the (conveniently found) data would likely cause reputational damage to 'commercial interests' for the department and the relevant commercial entities (Atos and Maximus). The ICO found this was not a valid reason for the government to withhold this information, and ordered the DWP to release the report. By appealing against this ruling from the ICO (and despite high numbers of overturned assessment decisions, concerns regarding cost, and ongoing evidence suggesting a link between WCA tests, mental health and deaths, including suicide), the DWP is unashamedly putting commercial interests above their moral obligation to protect the physical and mental health of our society's most vulnerable. 

The WCA, first introduced by Gordon Brown in 2008, uses a fixed points system to classify individuals into three categories: fit for work, unfit for work (but fit for work-related activity) and unfit for work. The WCA testing process has always been outsourced to private companies — first to Atos (an IT services corporation with an annual revenue of ~ €12 billion) in 2008. Atos were commissioned to assess individuals face-to-face using decision-making software to compile reports to send to the DWP regarding claimant's fitness to work. In 2005, Maximus (another private for-profit company that reported annual revenue of $1.7 billion in 2014) took over the contract. If a claimant disagrees with the outcome, claimants can ask the DWP to reconsider the case — a process known as 'mandatory reconsideration' whereby decisions can be overturned.

  

In 2011, David Cameron's coalition government, under the name of 'welfare reforms' and 'austerity', further revised the assessment (intended to save 'wasted' tax-payers money). A number of subsequent reports criticised the numbers of incorrect decisions that were overturned on appeal, the cost effectiveness of the tests, and the impact that WCAs have on claimant's health (Parliament's Office of Science and Technology, 2012; Public Accounts Committee, 2013; A study on WCA and mental health between 2010 and 2013 published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 2015; British Psychological Society, 2015; The National Audit Office, 2016; The United Nations, 2016). In addition, a number of coroners have also written to the DWP citing concerns regarding mental health problems, anxiety caused by the WCA, and suicide. Despite the devastating impact these assessments have had on thousands of lives, the Office for Budget Responsibility found that between 2011 and 2014, no savings had been made in the sickness benefit budget.

Individuals with chronic health problems (both physical and mental) already spend a substantial amount of time within the NHS. Only trained professionals with continued contact (such as GPs or specialists) are in any viable position to assess whether an individual is 'fit for work'. Outsourcing this task to for-profit companies (where targets and money are the main objective, and not the welfare of vulnerable members of our society) is an inhuman approach. Money spent outsourcing these assessments should be invested into the NHS, increasing staffing levels so that informed decisions can be made regarding fitness for work capabilities. As the evidence shows, a binary 'for-profit' approach does not work with complex health issues. 

Unnecessarily withholding relevant information is dishonest, cruel and unproductive. The DWP, and its commercial associates, need to be held responsible for any issues raised by this information to prevent any further suffering, and before the system spirals even further out of control. 

Tory 'Glastonbury' is just a very nasty party

The Tories are now planning a 'Tory Glastonbury' to bring in new members and gain grass-roots support after the success of Corbyn's speech at Glastonbury in June this year. “You brought the spirit of music, you bought the spirit of love, you bought the spirit of ideas, and you brought the spirit of great messages" said Corbyn to Michael Eavis in front of a huge (uninvited) audience on the Pyramid Stage.

Glastonbury is a festival of the performing arts. Glaston-Tory will be a festival of the dark arts. It's doubtful love, ideas and great messages will be promoted. 

Over 100,000 individuals now regularly attend Glastonbury but they say there will be 150-200 invitees at this party 'bringing in new members' and gaining 'grass-roots' support. Furthermore, given the refusal of Theresa May to attend election debates, it's doubtful she would appear on stage - the headline act is still to be confirmed. 

George Freeman MP commented in the Independent 'why is it the left who have all the fun in politics?' But George Freeman has already been having plenty of fun bullying those with mental health issues by voting to prevent disability payments going to "people sitting at home taking pills for anxiety" to direct it to the "really disabled". He subsequently apologised for any 'distress' he had caused.

"It'll be like your first rave" he gleefully continues. But interestingly 'raves' were made illegal by the Tories under the Justice and Public Order Act in 1994. Notably, the following is contained within that act: 

63: Powers to remove persons attending or preparing for a rave

(1) This section applies to a gathering on land in the open air of 100 or more persons (whether or not trespassers) at which amplified music (“music” includes sounds wholly or predominantly characterised by the emission of a succession of repetitive beats) is played during the night (with or without intermissions) and is such as, by reason of its loudness and duration and the time at which it is played, is likely to cause serious distress to the inhabitants of the locality.

Anyone at Glaston-Tory should therefore be arrested immediately if caught dancing to the repetitive beat of "strong and stable, strong and stable, strong and stable..." (glowsticks in hands or not). Alternatively, as the Tories have already caused enough serious distress to inhabitants of the UK locality, arrest them all on entry. Including George Freeman.

To compare a gathering of fewer than 200 Tories to Glastonbury is an insult. It's just a very nasty party. 

Why austerity is failing...

In March 2017, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) reported that Britain was in the midst of the weakest growth in living standards for over 60 years, since records began. 

Recently, in July 2017, the International Monetary Fund) (IMF) downgraded its annual growth forecast for the UK from 2% (estimated in April 2017) to 1.7%. In an interview on the subject, chancellor Philip Hammond  acknowledged the 'modest' growth and explained that 'increasing productivity is how we get higher living standards'. 

Perhaps increasing living standards is how we get higher productivity though? 

...Summer is here!

This year, in the final few days of parliament, Theresa May was hard at work demonstrating her ability to do 'boy jobs'  by chucking out a series of controversial policies at the same time as the BBC were conveniently covering their own problems.  Chris Evans how much? Increase in the pension age. Gary Linekar what? HS2 will cost  even more. Why the salary inequality? 

MPs now have a good seven weeks to do as they please.





Theresa May is going for a walk. She may be some time (three weeks). She can walk but she can't hide.






Jeremy Corbyn plans to march on to Scotland with his band of Many Men over August. His new-found confidence will take him north of the wall where he will target seats from SNP leader, Nicola Sturgeon. "Freedom!" shouts Nicola Sturgeon but no one is really listening to her anymore, and Alex Salmond is out of action after he became wounded during the last battle.





Boris Johnson will likely be spending the Summer entertaining and casually offending Europe. He's really mad that he's not allowed on Twitter to do this, he jovially moans to guests at his party.





Michael Gove could be up to anything over the summer. The chances are that he'll be up to something.




George 'Revenge' Osborne will likely continue to stir up trouble from the safe distance of his editorial desk. Hell hath no fury as a chancellor scorned.





David Davis,  Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, is probably going to take it easy over the summer. As he has done for the past four months. 


Vince Cable (the new/old leader of the Liberal Democrats) was last seen in a confused, slightly delirious, state claiming to be the next Macron and muttering something abut an "exit from Brexit". He seems to have forgotten about the failure of this policy to win votes by his predecessor, Tim Fallon (who subsequently turned to God). His memory is not what it used to be, and he'll most likely be spending the summer playing bingo.




Meanwhile the Brexit clock will keep ticking until 5th September...

July 2016 - July 2017: Happy Anniversary Theresa May!

It seems like it was only yesterday that David Cameron was gleefully skipping away from Number 10. At the age of only 49, unlike the rest of us, he was looking forward to an early retirement after his most notable achievement - sending the UK into a chaotic and uncertain future. 

In July 2016, Theresa May fought off competition from Michael 'surprise!' Gove, Boris 'de Pfeffel' Johnson and Andrea 'I've had babies' Leadsom to become the next Prime Minister of the UK. Theresa May sacked George Osborne and Michael Gove for misbehaving. And then surprised everyone by appointing Boris as Foreign Secretary, demonstrating that she does have a sense of humour after all.

George Osborne quickly assumed a new identity as a newspaper editor - 'Revenge'. Using his new powers, in a rather uncharacteristic display of transparency, he began to publicly attack Theresa May. 

At the end of March 2017, Theresa May triggered Article 50 - setting the clock ticking for the UK to leave the EU within two years. "Brexit means Brexit! Brexit means Brexit!" she chanted. The EU began to make preparations for the upcoming negotiations. 

On 8th April 2017, Theresa May announced a snap election. "I can be a bloody difficult woman" she taunted, as she proceeded to ignore her European counterparts and focused her efforts on the upcoming UK election. 

But what she hadn't realised was that Jeremy Corbyn was gathering his Many Men (and Women) at a fast pace. On the 8th June 2017, seven years of austerity, continuing cuts to public services, and a campaign based on three words, would result in Theresa May loosing her majority in government, and new old labour obtaining Momentum. Jeremy Corbyn has gained confidence and sometimes he wears a tie.

It was time for Theresa May to find some magic money and ten new Irish friends.

Meanwhile, Jacob Rees-Mogg starts making an increasing number of public appearances. No one knows where he came from. But it's unlikely he grew up on a council estate.

In June 2017, Michael Gove found himself invited back to the front benches. Nothing to do with Rupert Murdoch. "Who's he again?" enquired Michael Gove.

In July 2017, 4 months into the Brexit negotiating period, David Davis is sent in to begin negotiations with the EU (there's that sense of humour again). "Bloody difficult?!" snorted one MEP to another, "it's impossible!".

On the 18th July 2017, Theresa May has to tell ministers off for a series of leaks to the press. Michael Gove was suspiciously quiet around this period. 

On 21 July 2017, as MPs begin their summer holidays, Theresa May was last quoted saying she was 'going for a walk'...