Dame Anne Begg

Politics

Sign at entrance to Department for Work and Pensions

May 22, 2015

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DWP in dirty tricks row after abusive comments about disabled ex-MP

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is mired in a dirty tricks row after an anonymous comment that mirrored tabloid scrounger rhetoric – and attacked a disabled former Labour MP – was sent from a computer just yards from its headquarters. The comment was posted on the Disability News Service (DNS) website, in

Politics

Emily Brothers speaking at the Cambridge Union

May 15, 2015

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New parliament sees number of disabled MPs plunge

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The Conservative election victory appears to have delivered a heavy blow to long-term efforts to ensure greater representation of disabled people in parliament. Along with the retirement of disabled Labour MPs David Blunkett and Anne McGuire, there was defeat at the polls for the Liberal Democrat Stephen Lloyd and Labour’s Dame Anne Begg. This

Politics

May 15, 2015

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Dame Anne’s warning to disabled people: ‘Be afraid, be very afraid’

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A disabled Labour MP who lost her seat in last week’s general election has warned disabled people to “be very afraid” about the prospect of five years of a Conservative-only government. Dame Anne Begg had won the marginal Aberdeen South seat four times and had been an MP for 18 years, but was a

Activism and Campaigning

May 8, 2015

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COMMENT: What now? Tory victory provides clear course for DNS

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An overall majority for the Conservatives, three party leaders quitting, David Cameron back in Downing Street, and a landslide for the SNP in Scotland. The response from many disabled people to the result of yesterday’s general election – once the scale of the Tory victory began to sink in – was one of shock,

Benefits and Poverty

March 27, 2015

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MPs want new benefit deaths watchdog

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MPs have called on the government to set up a new independent body – modelled on the police complaints watchdog – to investigate the deaths of benefit claimants. The recommendation for a new organisation similar to the Independent Police Complaints Commission came in a report on the government’s benefits sanctions regime by the Commons

Benefits and Poverty

January 30, 2015

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IDS breaks pledge on PIP waiting-times, as tens of thousands still queue for months

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Government ministers have broken their high-profile promise to slash all waiting-times for the new disability benefit to less than four months. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) refused to comment yesterday (Thursday) on the broken promise that – by the end of 2014 – no new claimant would be waiting longer than 16

Employment

December 19, 2014 0

Access to Work crisis: Scheme must improve, say MPs

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The Access to Work (AtW) scheme is only helping a minority of the disabled people it should be supporting in the workplace, according to a committee of MPs. The work and pensions select committee report also warns that a new rule introduced by the government is having a ”detrimental” effect on Deaf people who

Benefits and Poverty

October 31, 2014 0

Access to Work crisis: Minister apologises for bungled reforms

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The minister for disabled people has apologised to MPs for the government’s botched reforms to a vital employment support programme for disabled people. Mark Harper, the Conservative minister for disabled people, was told by MPs that the changes to Access to Work (AtW) had led to a huge backlog of claims, “appalling” administration, and

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