Employment minister Chris Grayling has been accused of misleading parliament, after a written answer tabled in the Commons appeared to contradict correspondence from his private office about the censorship of a government publicity video on the appeals process for disability benefits.
In response to a question as to why a video designed to help disabled people in the Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) appeals process was removed from YouTube, Chris Grayling said:
“[We] did not direct that the Ministry of Justice video about ESA appeals be removed from YouTube. We sought to correct factual inaccuracies within the video…”
But far from a series of “factual inaccuracies”, Grayling had objected to perfectly truthful aspects of a video produced by the Ministry of Justice, saying of the film before it was axed: “it may be that we feel the whole tone of the video is wrong and could not be fixed.”
Freedom of Information requests show that the objections raised by Grayling included:
if the word medical must be used we’d be OK with “medical assessment”, but would prefer something like “an assessment of your capability to work”
Here the department seems to have been trapped by its own weasel words on assessments, which the government claims are performed by “approved healthcare professionals” — while denying they are “medical assessments”.
They go on to complain about the advice the MOJ gives to claimants in the video, saying:
“It notes that the [Job Centre Plus] doesn’t usually send anyone to a tribunal — while this is true…it does feel quite a negative comment… it’s noted that a claimant is twice as likely to win if they turn up in person — again this is broadly true, but doesn’t help…”
Between this, and two exposes of the assessment process being broadcast on Monday, by the BBC and Channel 4, Grayling is having a pretty bad week.
Grayling would know more than most benefits claimants about fiddling the system, having been forced to repay cash during an expenses scandal which exposed his Pimlico flat — funded by the taxpayer despite having two buy-to-let properties and a constituency home 17 miles away.
8 Comments
I just read the original email you link to. Your excerpts change the tone quite substantially.
They are a set of lying twunts.
At the end of the day they want as many people as possible off that benefit and on to a cheaper one. The fact that the disabled and sick people they put on to what was always supposed to be a short term benefit, with absolutely no chance of getting a job, and therefore living in misery, doesn’t seem to bother them. The number of deaths associated with this doesn’t appear to bother them either.
They have been shown up by not one, but two separate investigations.
They say they want to help people back to work. I’ve seen the kind of help they get from Jobcentre staff. It’s pathetic .
Sickening.
The DWP – easily the worst, most politically corrupted department in living memory – is just as bad, echoing Grayling’s lies at every turn.
There needs to be a big clear out of the partisan departmental leadership at DWP, if it remains under democratic control and isn’t outsourced to G4S or whoever, that is.
How come the commons committee doesn’t pull up the secretaries on their overtly ideological (!?) position on the market and these corrupt workfare providers? No doubt they are eyeing directorships in the companies they have handed contracts to.
Grayling is such a liar, he couldn’t tell the truth If he wanted.
You know how to tell when a minister is lying? He opens his mouth….
The whole bloody government are liars so what does everyone expect. Grayling is under orders from his ‘gaffer’. Why are we standing for a government that routinely abuses everyone that is not a millionaire and lobs big bucks into their shit pot? We need to unite and kick ass until the Tory destruct machine is dismantled.
“It notes that the [Job Centre Plus] doesn’t usually send anyone to a tribunal — while this is true…it does feel quite a negative comment… it’s noted that a claimant is twice as likely to win if they turn up in person — again this is broadly true, but doesn’t help…”
It’s a negative comment because you’ve been exposed as an evil, lying bag of uselessness (that was more polite than I’d normally choose), Grayling, and “but doesn’t help” means it doesn’t help you, doesn’t help you leave people in need to die and thus save you a whole ninety quid a week to hand over to your ex school chums in A4E, ATOS and the like.
We’re constantly labelled parasites on the state. Has there ever been a bigger parasite on the people of Britain than this current government? Even benefit cheats don’t actually drive people to suicide, or accelerate their illness to fatal levels thru constant stressful hounding.
I still wish someone had more clearly stated that this government has spent more on ATOS, A4E and other ‘back to work’ con artists than the entire benefit cheat costs combined.
What business, when found to be losing £10 a week to shoplifting, hires a dozen security guards at £300 a week? Sometimes you have to just accept that there’s a tiny, tiny minority of dishonest people, and you get on with your job and supplying the people that need your services.
Well of course we did have Labour in power, and sadly they told us all we are scroungers work shy lazy, even Miliband had a go and he supposed to be to the left, sadly once Blair came back I’d say he’s more Progress then Labour.
I always say, Show me a truthful politician, I’ll vote for him/her. However, I don’t think you’ll find one.