John Pring

Politics

October 4, 2018 0

MPs help WOW win fight for second Commons debate

Campaigners have won their fight to persuade MPs to hold a second debate in the House of Commons on the need for the government to assess the overall damage caused to disabled people by years of austerity cuts. The announcement that a debate will take place is a victory for members of the WOW

Housing

A wire fence, building work and a conference centre in the background

October 4, 2018 0

Tory conference: Senior minister ignores accessible housing crisis

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A senior government minister is facing criticism after ignoring the crisis in accessible housing in his speech to this week’s party conference. James Brokenshire, secretary of state for housing, communities and local government, told the conference that the prime minister saw housing as the government’s “biggest domestic priority”. Although he said that “everyone deserves

Benefits and Poverty

October 4, 2018 0

Tory conference: Newton admits DWP needs to improve

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The minister for disabled people has admitted that the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) needs to “make improvements” in order to increase disabled people’s “confidence” in the social security system. Sarah Newton told a fringe event at her party’s annual conference in Birmingham that “for lots of reasons” too many people were worried

Employment

Five people sat behind a long table, one of them is talking

October 4, 2018 0

Tory party conference: Potential of assistive technology is ‘truly transformatory’

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Developments in assistive technology over the next few years have the potential to be “truly, truly transformatory” for disabled people, a fringe event at the Conservative party conference heard this week. Neil Heslop, chief executive of the disability charity Leonard Cheshire, who uses assistive technology himself, said that technology was “a massive force for

Human Rights

A tweet by Julia Hartley-Brewer which includes a sign saying 'safe space'

September 27, 2018 0

Labour conference: Right-wing journalist faces ban call after ‘safe space’ video

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Disabled party members are calling on Labour to ban a prominent right-wing journalist from future events after she posted a video on social media mocking the provision of a “safe space” used by disabled people at this week’s party conference. The party has told Disability News Service (DNS) that the behaviour of Julia Hartley-Brewer

Politics

September 27, 2018 0

Labour conference: De Cordova calls for a ‘Labour alternative’ to universal credit

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Labour’s shadow minister for disabled people has called on her party to come up with its own alternative to the government’s flawed universal credit benefit system. Marsha de Cordova (pictured) moved further this week than any of her shadow frontbench colleagues at Labour’s annual conference in Liverpool towards the idea of scrapping universal credit

Activism and Campaigning

September 27, 2018 0

Labour conference: Anger at party’s failure to pledge to scrap universal credit

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Labour is facing mounting anger from disabled anti-cuts activists over its refusal to call for the government’s universal credit benefit system to be scrapped. Much of the anger has been directed at shadow work and pensions secretary Margaret Greenwood, who instead of pledging to scrap universal credit – at Labour’s annual conference in Liverpool

Benefits and Poverty

September 27, 2018 0

WCA tragedy woman’s mum vows to fight on for justice despite No 10 letter snub

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A disabled woman whose daughter took her own life after being wrongly found “fit for work” has vowed to continue her fight for justice, despite the prime minister’s office brushing off her request for a meeting. Joy Dove wrote in July to ask for a meeting with Theresa May to discuss the tragic death

Benefits and Poverty

Conference delegates watch a speech, with big screens showing the speaker

September 27, 2018 0

Labour conference: Members call on party to ‘stop and scrap’ universal credit

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Disabled Labour members have used the annual conference to demand that their party calls on the government to scrap its “toxic” universal credit benefit system. Labour’s position has been to call on the government to stop the rollout of universal credit – which merges six working-age benefits into one – and to “fix” it.

Author John Pring