One of the greatest scandles presently going unreported, is the way in which private sector business interrests once they have public sector contracts seem to be beyound the law and have NO accountability.
After months of dealing with case upon case of failings in the ATOS system and little power to do anything, Lewisham People Before Profit have bought together interested campaign groups and victims from across the UK to take on the Goverment and ATOS in the European Courts for Justice, Can you or your Group support this? send an email to raymondwoolford@aol.com.
We also need more Case stories and victims to be prepared to join the legal action against ATOS, the more human stories we have, the greater the media coverage to secure public support and change the law.
We also need more Case stories and victims to be prepared to join the legal action against ATOS, the more human stories we have, the greater the media coverage to secure public support and change the law.
At last nights PB4P meeting the party agreed to take the case forward and work across political groups to fight and win our case.
What are the grounds for our case you may ask?
As founder of the We Care Food Bank and Advice Centre i see the terribly misery caused by Atos and a system that will lead to more deaths of disabled and vunarable people, which is why i agreed to support this new Campaign Called...Atos does not give ATOS...Which links groups across the UK opposed to ATOS.
Case number one;
Ms A was on job seekers allowance in 2012, on 28 December she became very ill and had to put in a claim for ESA , Atos was in charge of assessing her case and our client forwarded hospital and doctors letters confirming her condition.
Last month her 10 year old Daughter was taken into care.
She cannot appeal as no decission has been made about her case.
She cannot get hardship funds as not in reciept of benefit.
She cannot get vouchers for food, as not in reciept of benefit.
All payments have been stopped, leaving her desperate and penny less . A private Landlord can evict any tenant once they are 2 months in rent arrears.
Our client 7 months later is still like many others across the UK going without food and at risk of eviction as direct result of ATOS not having to give a timescale to respond to claims.
Without support of People Before Profit and the We Care Advice team, she says she would have taken her own life so desperate has this made her, not to mention the negative impact on her health.
When you write a letter to any Goverment organisation they on average have a legal duty to respond within 28 days. So why are privatised contracts exempt from the legal requirements as set out for the public sector?
We urgently need people to spread word of this campaign widely via Blogs, Twitter local press Email etc.
We welcome your Comments at the bottom of this page plus would welcome your stories as the campaign takes of, the more stuff we have the more people will join the campaign.
We welcome your Comments at the bottom of this page plus would welcome your stories as the campaign takes of, the more stuff we have the more people will join the campaign.
We also urgently need donations to fight this injustice in the EU court.
Every £1 counts, Please give something to the Fighting fund.
We Care Account; Co-Op bank Lewisham London;
Sort Code 08 92 99
Account Number 65659328
Campaign Office; We Care, 467 New Cross Road Deptford London SE14 6TA.
11am-2pm Monday to Saturday.
11am-2pm Monday to Saturday.
PAYMENT REFERENCE ATOS Campaign .
You can Follow me on Twitter @Raywoolford as we intend to start Legal Challenge this month.
www.peoplebeforeprofit.org.uk
All campaigns must have a battle song..hope you like this from our friends in Liverpool.
All campaigns must have a battle song..hope you like this from our friends in Liverpool.
Here are the words - by Catharine Percy Huskisson (alias, in this case, Frank Kennedy of LSS)
You can generally get words to most of our songs from the website www.liverpoolsocialistsingers.net
CHORUS]
ALL THINGS BRIGHT AND BEAUTIFUL
All illness great and small,
All types of disability -
ATOS can cure them all.
1.
They'll tell us we can work if
We make it through the day.
Though no-one will employ us,
So no support, no pay.
[CHORUS]
2.
We won't be needing wheelchairs,
'Cause mighty ATOS say:
"We know just how to help you,
We'll kick your sticks away!"
[CHORUS]
3.
We'll not CON-DEM the bankers,
Or corporate execs -
But sick or injured poor folk
We'll scrap as useless wrecks.
[CHORUS]
We have another song as well but I can't access it from my phone - will try to remember to send it to you.
1 comment:
I agree with all or most of what you say. I have experience of claiming ESA.
Just two things: I like the song, but the problem isn't just to do with the current government (see verse 3), it is Labour as well. Yes, they have said they will sack Atos, but the problem with ESA is much, much deeper than that. It is the ESA system in general that is the problem. Getting rid of a private company like Atos will make little or no difference if the next sub-contractor's powers remain the same in future, and also if the work capability assessment forms and forms remain the same. Atos will just be replaced by someone else. Labour as well as the current government have signalled no intention of even reviewing the current ESA system, let alone improve it.
I think this is important to know - because I am a bit sick of reading endless things attacking just the Tories and Lib Dems. It's like the left are stuck in some bizarre way of thinking, thinking things are like the 1970s when Labour did often used to have policies that helped those in need. They don't any more. And unless Labour is attacked consistently, NOTHING will change, we will remain an ever-increasing backward country, basically run in a way that keeps Daily Mail readers happy.
- Dave
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