We knew this day would come. We've known for a while that it was coming, but finally it's happened, as it always had to.
The gloves have come off between Atos and the DWP!
To be honest, I couldn't believe it had gone this long. For months we've known that the contract with Atos had failed, long before we heard officially in March that they would be walking away from the detested "work capability assessments" or WCAs. I'd been hearing of wranglings and arguments, deadlocks and very unhappy bunnies in general. On both sides.
To keep that quiet for so long has been quite an achievement in itself.
But today, Atos start the long journey of rehabilitating their decimated public reputation, by finally telling their side of the story on - wait for it - BBC news no less! Now that the contract is broken, for the first time, they get to defend themselves and point out the failures that were never anything to do with them but all set in stone at the DWP. Let's hope that at the same time they acknowledge their own very considerable failings too.
However, today is the day when absolutely every voice in the Employment and Support Allowance debate are against the DWP. And doesn't that make everything so much tidier ;)
Although please note the almost ludicrously dismissive "Campaigners argue the tests are fundamentally flawed" with no mention whatsoever of why or what these failures in the whole sorry process are. The BBC record on covering this issue with any kind of balance, has been unforgivable and becomes more so by the day.
On a serious note, whilst the article does say that claimants and campaigners made doing the job impossible, (YAY FOR US!) but it goes a long way to explaining why claimants were justified in their fierce opposition. This is a slight shift in the Atos line it seems to me, away from blaming claimants to blaming the system design itself and the DWP
CELEBRATE, DO CARTWHEELS, RT AND SHARE!!!!
http://m.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-27767779 …
Another lot of evidence to add to Our Fight for TRUTH Lies,Damn Lies, IDS and The DWP; STOP Spinning Statistics" #ImpeachDWP #NOWPetition http://www.change.org/en-GB/petitions/david-cameron-lies-damn-lies-ids-and-the-dwp-stop-spinning-statistics-impeachdwp-nowpetition
ReplyDeleteReading this perhaps unfortunate plea on behalf of the Atos assessors "They are doing a very good job of applying the legislation the government has laid out and despite that they are being vilified for it." I can't help it; Nazis and gas ovens positively leap to mind. Could they not see that coming?
ReplyDelete"I vas only doink my job!"
ReplyDeleteAren't Atos still doing the PIP assessments ... or are they totally out of love with the DWP?
ReplyDeletemurderers spring to mind us mere scum to atos and dwp would get life behind bars for what they are doing to the sick and disabled
ReplyDeleteThey were acting under orders, where have I heard that before
ReplyDeleteIn Hastings where I live ATOS inform the public on their website they've recently sub-contracted all PIP assessments to a local body building gym, located at the back of an industrial estate. The gym appears to be full of pumped up muscle boys - Is a gym instructor appropriately qualified to assess those PIP claimants with learning impairments or non-physical impairments?.....It's a bit odd even for ATOS, who have their own building in Hastings town centre.....
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry but Atos don't get to wriggle out of all the blame. they are the ones who were doing computer assessments - until forced to do the personal summaries and make sure that thier assessments actually made sense.
ReplyDeleteMost damningly they are also the ones who didn't tell thier assessors about rules 29 and 35:
the claimant suffers from some specific disease or bodily or mental disablement and, by reasons of such disease or disablement, there would be a substantial risk to the mental or physical health of any person if the claimant were found not to have limited capability for work.
All the hand wringing about the claimant not fitting the descriptors doesn't wash when there is a regulation specifically for people who don't fit the descriptors.
yet they have been well rewarded for their denial of points towards your benefits yet 4contracts they have even medical to sell to their mates Unum ones still are going nay it seems now they have that company from or part of the nhs salus who do the pips assessments then give them to their paymasters atos so once again they get to cook the books for rtu ids you now they bent you now they lie but they aint gone just hiding behind salus jeff3
ReplyDeleteSo yet again the BBC print the lie that was told by Mr Smith
ReplyDelete"Ministers have said nearly a million people who applied for sickness benefit have been found fit for work and the tests have been subject to continual reviews to identify problems."
This was shown to be a lie and a huge one at that. Mr Smith and Fraud were both reprimanded for their lies on statistics yet still that sentence will again make people angry - they'll see it as us being scroungers yet again and the harassment will continue against the disabled!
As for Atos, I hope everyone who worked for that disgraceful company, and had anything at all to do with the assessments, rots in hell...
They're taking a hell of a long time to go, though!
ReplyDeleteif IDS tells the DWP/ ATOS to do something that is a legal undertaking in law you either do it or you don't and you are responsible for implementing all polices within the contract
ReplyDeleteATOS failed in their duty of care as they were not in control of the contract and should never have excepted it for it had no safeguards built in to it
The DWP's crime was to offer this contract out in the first place as it's far to important a policy where life is on the line and accountability is so important as this should always rest with the state
many lives have been lost and many employees from both ATOS/DWP need now to go before a court and explain to a judge what has gone on' what has gone wrong and why so many have died as there are many people across the world and in the UN who would like to know
i am sure that as time passes those responsible on all sides for the vast amount of deaths will be bought to justice however long that takes so that the families of those that have died in going through welfare reform can have some closure
Ultimately the buck stops with IDS and the prime minister who failed to understand the disastrous consequences of such a flawed social security policy update they then implemented it and people died they then failed to cancel it after deaths were reported and still they let it continue for many others to die
if i were a judge you could be certain that i would give life sentences to all those involved in committing these heinous crimes against people who were sick and disabled and am sure that is what will happen in the course of time
I have done my darndest to inform and apprise Tim Fallon (LibDem President) and Ed Miliband (Labour Leader) of the issues. They chose either to deny, not listen or failed to act. None are innocent here.
DeleteI am sorry but Ats don't get to wriggle out of all the blame. they are the ones who were doing computer assessments - until forced to do the personal summaries and make sure that their assessments actually made sense. Thanks for sharing the useful information.
ReplyDeleteCan I ask a small favour, I am a huge fan of your blog but sometimes all the DWP and ATOS confuses me. Could you spell it out in english so as an interested newcomer I can have a chance of following along?! It would heighten the chance of leaving an intelligent comment (although this is me so no promises!!)
ReplyDelete