Tag: Court

29 on the appointed day

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The first time he discovered he was in trouble was when a letter arrived
from the Department.
It was headed Fraud Investigation Section.
An investigator was going to call at his home
to interview him.
Diabetic neuropathy;
he had been unable to walk without discomfort
for over a decade.
He had been claiming benefit.
His wife had taken a part-time job
despite her own disabilities
to supplement their meagre income.
He had phoned the Department,
was told his wife’s new job
had been noted on his records.
It was more than two years later
that the fateful letter came.
The investigator arrived
on the appointed day.
The interview was carried out under caution.
He was stunned to discover
his wife’s job
was the reason for the visit.
The Department claimed
no knowledge of her job;
when he said he had informed the Department,
he was told point blank
he was lying.
His solicitor advised him:
it would be his word
against the Department’s.
Best thing to do:
plead guilty.
‘What happened to innocent
until proven guilty?’ he asked.
The solicitor
shook his head.
On the day of his court appearance
he was handed down
community punishment:
160 hours.

[Morning Star, 26/07/2011, Who are the real benefit cheats?]

54 the old system

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During the 1960s
while pregnant with her
her mother took thalidomide.
She is blind in one eye,
partially deaf,
can barely walk,
barely dress herself.
She has arthritis.
In 2004 she underwent surgery
to remove a brain tumour.
She retired from her job
as a care assistant.
She was to undergo spinal surgery
late in 2013.
‘It is because of the way I have had
to manipulate my body over the years
to try and live a normal life.
Because we have to use our bodies
in different ways
what anyone else finds normal
has killed us.’
She and her late husband
were believed to be
the first thalidomide victims in Britain
to get married.
(Her carer
helps her make tea
and brushes her hair.)
In July 2012
she received a letter
saying she must go
on a training course.
Her family appealed
and the decision was overturned.
Then
in October
she was told
once again
she should not
be claiming benefits
as she could not prove
she was unfit to work.
A further appeal was rejected.
A spokesman for the Department said
‘The old system
condemned too many people
to a life on benefits
with little hope
of moving back to work.
Now
people who can work
will be given help
to find a job
while those who need unconditional support
will get it.’
She was served with court papers
and must attend a tribunal
where she will have to prove
her disabilities to a judge.

[Daily Star, 16/03/2013, Benefits hell for Thalidomide patient; Daily Mail, 15/03/2013, Blind in one eye, partially deaf and facing major spinal surgery but Thalidomide mother is still found fit to work; The Independent, 15/03/2013, Capable of ‘work-related activity’: Partially blind Thalidomide victim with brain tumour fights Atos decision to force her to attend interviews and put together CV]