21 April 2011
Cameron is giving addicts the cold shoulder
Faiza Shaheen
Researcher on economic inequality
Alarm bells were ringing when I heard David Cameron and Chris Grayling talking about alcoholics and drug addicts on benefits today. Apparently around 42,000 of those on incapacity benefits (IB) state alcoholism as their reason for being on long-term benefits, 37,000 state drug addiction and a further 2,000 obesity. This is a total of around 3 per cent of the 2.6 million people claiming IB (or ISA as it is now known). That’s not to say that it isn’t important to help people with these addictions, but this small proportion makes me question the real motive for making such a song and dance about it.
My natural reaction is to advocate more support for these groups who will find it most difficult to enter the labour market. But I know that treating alcoholism and drug addiction is expensive, takes time and requires considerable manpower. This is simply not going to happen in a time of sweeping public spending cuts.
I have a bad feeling that publishing these statistics is not about highlighting the deep-seated reasons some people cannot get into work - rather to gain public support for the massive cuts in welfare support by encouraging people to think that drunks and junkies are wasting their taxes. There was even a whiff of Cameron implying that people become addicts because of their own rational judgement, showing just how ignorant he is of the troubled lives that often lead people to turn to drugs and alcohol in the first place.
Meanwhile a friend of mine who works for a welfare delivery company told me over dinner last night that her company had lost out on the contracts to deliver welfare-to-work programmes, as did many others. So who did win? Work Directions, a private company half owned by Deloitte. Why? Apparently they offered a discount rate. Great for budget reduction, but not so great for the people with expensive barriers to work like alcoholism. I fail to see how raising the issue of alcoholics on benefits while cutting financial support has any other than a cynical objective.
Cameron claims the Labour government left this group ‘for dead.’ The Coalition government’s current welfare reform proposals offer nothing more.
Share this:
Connect with us
Recent blog posts
-
Budget 2012: Inequality set to rise
21 March 2012
-
Freezing the minimum wage will hurt not help young people
21 March 2012
-
A budget that will take the lid off the top and increase inequality
20 March 2012
-
I’m a jobs snob. Iain Duncan Smith should be one too.
24 February 2012
-
Obama gets it, why don't we?
26 January 2012
-
Where next for the fight against economic inequality?
3 January 2012
-
The autumn statement from an inequality perspective
5 December 2011
-
A week in inequality
30 September 2011
-
Poverty ⇆ culture and explaining the riots
24 August 2011
-
Plan A is wreaking havoc on the poor
27 July 2011
Comments
21 Apr 2011 at 14:40
Antony, Birmingham
Quite sickening. Hes purposely looking to divide society and find scapegoats amongst the vulnerable. First he targeted ethnic minorities now its addicts. Its dirty politics just like the No to AV campaign.21 Apr 2011 at 15:00
jim gilliland
well, dave would know all about it - his days at Eaton were filled with drug crazed binges weren't they? http://tinyurl.com/3j2788r or am i hyping the facts to make a social point? ;)21 Apr 2011 at 15:01
jim gilliland
well, dave would know all about it - his days at Eaton were filled with drug crazed binges weren't they? http://tinyurl.com/3j2788r or am i hyping the facts to make a social point? ;)21 Apr 2011 at 21:46
Kevin Mayes
Sounds like the kind of "no time for losers" self righteousness that spews forth at every possible juncture from those who believe their wealth is a reward for their innate moral superiority.21 Apr 2011 at 21:52
SuicideIsPainless
The Government of this country have failed to protect people from the effects of Narcotics for 40 yrs or more . They should be stopping drugs entering this country and making sure the drugs that do are unable to be distributed? The goverments of this country are failing the people not vice versa !! Alcoholics another vunerable group being targeted Cameron is quick to point out how much is being paid out in benefits to these people what he doesnt point out is the revenue being made from the sales of alcohol which many many times outweighs the amount of benefit paid!! And now the Obese a horrible word and a horrible way to target people who are overweight for a variety of reasons. This is really beginning to scare me it sounds more like something you might hear on all our yesterdays from Adolf Hitlers regime in the 30s and 40s !! Why can companies like Vodofone be allowed to get off with millions/ billions of pounds in revenue , while the vunerable are being castigated ? and more to the point why are we allowing it to happen ? we are slipping into war in Libya, we are spending millions/billions on war and war zones which are nothing to do with us our soldiers are being blown to pieces for the Oil the USA want to get their greedy hands on. DIVIDE AND RULE this is about making the people lucky enough to be employed think that they are paying for the benefits ! I wonder whos taxes pay for the security needed for the MPs etc . Much was made about Camerons cheap flight / holiday nothing was mentioned about the cost of security that would have to be put in place for this break ? I am as much at risk from terrorism as Cameron where is my security, Why do MPs Ministers etc have to have 2nd homes to be in london in an age of technology that can talk to someone on the other side of the world face to face , Hypocrisy and victimisation the rich getting richer the poor getting poorer , God help us all !!!21 Apr 2011 at 21:53
SuicideIsPainless
The Government of this country have failed to protect people from the effects of Narcotics for 40 yrs or more . They should be stopping drugs entering this country and making sure the drugs that do are unable to be distributed? The goverments of this country are failing the people not vice versa !! Alcoholics another vunerable group being targeted Cameron is quick to point out how much is being paid out in benefits to these people what he doesnt point out is the revenue being made from the sales of alcohol which many many times outweighs the amount of benefit paid!! And now the Obese a horrible word and a horrible way to target people who are overweight for a variety of reasons. This is really beginning to scare me it sounds more like something you might hear on all our yesterdays from Adolf Hitlers regime in the 30s and 40s !! Why can companies like Vodofone be allowed to get off with millions/ billions of pounds in revenue , while the vunerable are being castigated ? and more to the point why are we allowing it to happen ? we are slipping into war in Libya, we are spending millions/billions on war and war zones which are nothing to do with us our soldiers are being blown to pieces for the Oil the USA want to get their greedy hands on. DIVIDE AND RULE this is about making the people lucky enough to be employed think that they are paying for the benefits ! I wonder whos taxes pay for the security needed for the MPs etc . Much was made about Camerons cheap flight / holiday nothing was mentioned about the cost of security that would have to be put in place for this break ? I am as much at risk from terrorism as Cameron where is my security, Why do MPs Ministers etc have to have 2nd homes to be in london in an age of technology that can talk to someone on the other side of the world face to face , Hypocrisy and victimisation the rich getting richer the poor getting poorer , God help us all !!!21 Apr 2011 at 22:22
Anonymous
Isn't this a little close to home! Is his own family so clear of addiction that he is able to make such idiotic judgements about others?!!! Stones and glasshouses etc etc21 Apr 2011 at 22:27
Anonymous
Is he referring to his recovering addict sister amongst any of this self righteous nonsense?!22 Apr 2011 at 08:45
Carolyn
Just another cheap political trick to generate media "moral outrage". There are very few jobs, yet there are many people who, for a number of reasons, are further away from the job market, (depression was, I believe, at the top of the list for reasons for claiming invalidity benefits). We need a two pronged approach, we need to create jobs, encourage social entrepreneurs and develop better support systems for those who are facing barriers to work. We also need to provide schemes such as welfare to work, future jobs fund, which help people develop the skills to return to work. These schemes, of course, can be expensive and this government is more interested in short term savings than long term benefit.