Link to this page: http://www.socialistparty.org.uk/issue/559/6685
From The Socialist newspaper, 3 December 2008
In brief
Welfare to profit
Attacks on benefits paid to lone parents and disabled people will feature in the Queen's speech to parliament this week. As previously reported in The Socialist, the government's new Welfare Reform Bill will penalise lone parents with children as young as one, partners of people claiming benefits with children under seven and incapacity benefit claimants who are deemed to be capable of working.
Previously the government said that lone parents with children aged over seven must seek work or lose benefits. Now they have introduced a new category of claimants - the 'progression to work' group - whose children are over one year.
To oversee this harassment, the government will outsource claimants' personal advisers from the DWP, thereby allowing private companies to profit from the unemployed and the disabled.
Crisis loans
New Labour priorities are clear. If you are a fat-cat bank looking for emergency money, your application is quickly approved as witnessed by the £37 billion lent to RBS, Lloyds TSB and HBOS last month.
If, however, you are poor, in desperate need and apply for an emergency crisis loan from the Social Fund, you may not be so fortunate.
Last year saw a 40% increase in crisis loan applications, with applications from workers on low incomes rising to a total of 2.5 million. In the past six months 300,000 (19%) of all applications were rejected. Emergency crisis loans are used for such luxuries as food and heating.
Work till you drop
Half a million people hope to retire this year, relying on their personal pension to top up their inadequate state pension. But the economic downturn of capitalism means that pension pot values have fallen in the past year by a staggering 25%-40%. This fall means that many will have to seek employment in their old age to get a living income.
Thanks to Rob Bishop
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In The Socialist 3 December 2008:
Job losses
Fight back now against job cuts
Fighting the threatened closure of Hoover factory
Environment and socialism
Socialist Party editorial
Socialist Party campaigns
Judiciary challenged over the right to protest
Building a left wing political alternative
Southampton uni students fight fees
Liverpool: mobilising against the far right
Comment
Social workers demand proper resources
Secondary education: PFI's gloss soon peels away
Socialist Party LGBT
Socialist Party Marxist analysis
Crisis-hit capitalism fears prospect of revolution
International socialist news and analysis
Venezuela elections: Chávez wins victory but opposition gains ground
Marxist analysis: history
The Isle of Man general strike 1918: Workers' power paralysed government
Socialist Party news and analysis
Help fund the alternative to big business politics
Socialist women: Looking at the past to take action today
Housing crisis
Socialist Party workplace news
Vote 'no' to BT's pension cuts
A Christmas message from the Unite leadership
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