BEDROOM & ESA TAX BUST UP: ROS ALTMANN BROADSIDE IN FULL: AS SHAILESH VARA JOINS IN: DUNCAN-SMITH QUITS OVER 3 BILLION CUT IN DISABILITY BENEFITS ENDORSED BY STANGROUND SOUTH, CARDEA TORY CANDIDATES

+++ BREAKING NEWS
+++ IAIN DUNCAN-SMITH RESIGNS

+++ IAIN DUNCAN-SMITH LETTER

+++ SHALESH VARA LETTER

+++ BARONESS ALTMANN PRESS RELEASE

+++ DAVID CAMERON LETTER


http://stangroundsouth.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/13-billion-cut-in-disability-benefits.html

Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith has resigned, citing pressure to make cuts to disability benefits. Here is the full text of his letter :

DEAR PRIME MINISTER...

"I am incredibly proud of the welfare reforms that the government has delivered over the last five years. Those reforms have helped to generate record rates of employment and in particular a substantial reduction in workless households.

As you know, the advancement of social justice was my driving reason for becoming part of your ministerial team and I continue to be grateful to you for giving me the opportunity to serve. You have appointed good colleagues to my department who I have enjoyed working with. It has been a particular privilege to work with with excellent civil servants and the outstanding Lord Freud and other ministers including my present team, throughout all of my time at the Department of Work and Pensions.

I truly believe that we have made changes that will greatly improve the life chances of the most disadvantaged people in this country and increase their opportunities to thrive. A nation's commitment to the least advantaged should include the provision of a generous safety-net but it should also include incentive structures and practical assistance programmes to help them live independently of the state. Together, we've made enormous strides towards building a system of social security that gets the balance right between state help and self help.

Throughout these years, because of the perilous public finances we inherited from the last Labour administration, difficult cuts have been necessary. I have found some of these cuts easier to justify than others but aware of the economic situation and determined to be a team player I have accepted their necessity.

You are aware that I believe the cuts would have been even fairer to younger families and people of working age if we had been willing to reduce some of the benefits given to better-off pensioners but I have attempted to work within the constraints that you and the chancellor set.

I have for some time and rather reluctantly come to believe that the latest changes to benefits to the disabled and the context in which they've been made are, a compromise too far. While they are defensible in narrow terms, given the continuing deficit, they are not defensible in the way they were placed within a Budget that benefits higher earning taxpayers. They should have instead been part of a wider process to engage others in finding the best way to better focus resources on those most in need.

I am unable to watch passively whilst certain policies are enacted in order to meet the fiscal self imposed restraints that I believe are more and more perceived as distinctly political rather than in the national economic interest.

Too often my team and I have been pressured in the immediate run up to a budget or fiscal event to deliver yet more reductions to the working age benefit bill. There has been too much emphasis on money saving exercises and not enough awareness from the Treasury, in particular, that the government's vision of a new welfare-to-work system could not be repeatedly salami-sliced.

It is therefore with enormous regret that I have decided to resign. You should be very proud of what this government has done on deficit reduction, corporate competitiveness, education reforms and devolution of power. I hope as the government goes forward you can look again, however, at the balance of the cuts you have insisted upon and wonder if enough has been done to ensure "we are all in this together".

Yours ever
Iain Duncan-Smith

___________________________________________________

.....and the Prime Minister (through gritted teeth - note its signed Yours not Yours ever) responds:

Meanwhile Baroness Ros Altmann wades in with this barnstorming missive:

Personal Statement by Pensions Minister, Ros Altmann 19 March 2016

I am extremely shocked by the news of Iain Duncan Smith’s resignation and the way he has behaved.

Having worked alongside him as a minister in the Department for Work and Pensions, I have seen that he championed the very package of reforms to disability benefits he now says is the reason he has resigned.

I simply cannot understand why he suddenly chose to quit like this when it was clear that Number 10 and the Treasury had told him they were going to pause and rethink these measures. I’m particularly saddened that this really seems to be about the European referendum campaign rather than about DWP policy. 

 
From a personal perspective, for months I have been silenced by him and what I have said has been strictly controlled.  I have had to accept that this is part of being in Government, but am therefore horrified to see him abuse the freedom to take sides the Prime Minister has generously offered to ministers. 

In particular, I was astonished that he attacked his own government for producing what he called "dodgy dossiers" on the EU situation, which simply sought to set out the facts about this vital issue for our country’s future.

He seems to want to do maximum damage to the party leadership in order to further his campaign to try to get Britain to leave the EU.

As far as I could tell, he appeared to spend much of the last few months plotting over Europe and against the leadership of the party and it seemed to me he had been planning to find a reason to resign for a long time.

I have found him exceptionally difficult to work for.  It has been a hugely challenging time for me as he was preventing me from speaking to the public and has often been obstructive to my efforts to resolve important pension policy issues such as on women's pensions. 

I am looking forward to working with new Secretary of State, Stephen Crabb.

Pensions Minister, Ros Altmann  

Not to be outdone...Baroness Altmann's recollection of being closed down by Duncan Smith is this morning contradicted by the other junior pensions minister, the MP Shailesh Vara.

In a message to Duncan Smith that Shailesh Vara has authorised to be published, Vara says:

"I have to say I'm surprised by Ros's comments. The fact is that I recall Ros attending all the meetings at which we openly discussed government policy and then we both went out to defend the policy in the Commons and Lords, which as you know wasn't always easy to do.

"Ros's recollection does not accord with mine and I'm sorry this has happened".

This back and forth between serving ministers of the government is a nightmare for the prime minister.

If Downing Street authorised Baroness Altmann to speak out last night, its officials may be regretting giving her that licence this morning

Conservative Ministers face intense pressure to perform a U-turn over plans for a £1.3 billion a year cut in disability benefits as a few Tory MPs have threatened to revolt over the measure. The exceptions being Shailesh Vara MP and Stewart Jackson MP who are all for the cuts...

The Stanground  South Local Tory Candidate hopefuls under the control of former Care Home owner Cllr Sheila Scott, who made such a 'horlicks' of Peterborough Childrens Services.  Tories are also thought to be in favour of the cuts to Personal Independence Payments. The local MP Shailesh Vara Justice Minister has already  endorsed cuts to disability payments, as has back bencher Stewart Jackson MP

Courtesy Imperial War Museum

THE LULL BEFORE THE IDS STORM : 
The Government is committed to pushing ahead with a controversial £1.3 billion cut to disability benefits despite the threat of a Tory backbench rebellion, Downing Street has said.

Prime Minister David Cameron's official spokeswoman said reform of personal independence payments (PIP) was essential in order to curb the "ballooning" welfare bill.

However she said ministers would be "engaging" with MPs and disability rights groups over the coming months before tabling legislation.

"The Government's position hasn't changed. We remain committed to making these much- needed reforms," the spokeswoman said.
"We have got the time now, with the proposals out there before we bring forward the legislative proposals, to be explaining it to colleagues across the House, to be engaging with disability groups, and that's what we will do."



PA REPORTS: Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith wrote to Tory MPs to insist that consultations were continuing while Cabinet colleague Nicky Morgan said the proposed cut was merely a "suggestion".

Chancellor George Osborne has been warned that the restrictions on the personal independence payment (PIP) would be defeated in a Commons vote as there would be enough Tory rebels to wipe out the Government's slender majority.

In an effort to prevent a revolt which could wipe out the Government's slender Commons majority, Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith later wrote to Tory MPs to insist that consultations were continuing, while Cabinet colleague Nicky Morgan said the proposed cut was merely a "suggestion".

But Mr Corbyn told BBC Radio 5 Live the Government was planning to take £4 billion out of the benefit over the course of the Parliament at the same time that George Osborne's Budget was "giving tax relief to the biggest companies in cutting corporation tax".
"It is utterly appalling what they are proposing," he said. "We will be forcing a vote in Parliament on this. I hope and believe all opposition parties will join with us in that.
"I believe a number of Conservative MPs are so upset about this they too will vote against the Government."

Conservative backbencher Andrew Percy, who has organised a letter to the Chancellor calling for a rethink, warned that the Government would be defeated in the Commons if it tried to push the changes through.

Backbencher William Wragg became the latest Conservative to register his concern about the plan, putting his name to Mr Percy's letter and saying the "PIP changes need a rethink".

The squeeze on PIPs will see up to 640,000 people affected by tighter criteria, brought forward after a review by health professionals found people were being awarded points for aids and appliances already in homes or provided by the NHS and councils.


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The squeeze on PIPs will see up to 640,000 people affected by tighter criteria, brought forward after a review by health professionals found people were being awarded points for aids and appliances already in homes or provided by the NHS and councils.

The Budget documents made clear that the proposals would save more than £4 billion by 2020-21.

Education Secretary Mrs Morgan appeared to indicate that the plans could be watered down in the face of a backbench revolt.

She told BBC1's Question Time: "This is a measure that is still being discussed in Government."

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Mrs Morgan added: "It is something that has been put forward, there has been a review, there has been a suggestion, we are not ready to bring the legislation forward."

She insisted: "We want there to be control of the welfare budget. We also made it very clear that we are not going to balance the books on the back of the poor and the disabled and we absolutely hold to that promise."

Conservative backbencher Andrew Percy, who has organised a letter to Mr Osborne calling for a rethink, warned the Government would be defeated in the Commons if it tried to push the changes through.

Ministers insist that overall spending on disability benefits is going up and the changes are needed to make sure the cash is better targeted to those in most need.

But Mr Percy said it was clear the shift was aimed at hitting spending targets, not improving support, and that the Government was on course to suffer defeat in the Commons if it sought to push the change through.

He told Channel 4 News: "There is no measure that has been put before the House of Commons yet. If a measure is put before the House of Commons I think it is fair to say that it is unlikely to get the support of the House of Commons given how much concern there is on this matter.
"But this is a consultation, we are not there yet."

The Brigg and Goole MP wrote on Twitter: "If I can be honest, I'd rather have a penny or two on fuel if it protects PIP."

Conservative MP Johnny Mercer also expressed reservations about the plans, saying on Twitter: "Concerned by proposed changes to PIP. Not sure right direction."

Fellow Tory David Burrowes said the proposals were a "backward step" and urged ministers to "press pause on it".

He told BBC2's Newsnight: "There's lots that we are doing so much better but this puts us on the back foot."

Ministers are trying to win over MPs, stressing that the planned changes followed a consultation with disability organisations and the proposals were set out before the Budget.

Mr Osborne told the BBC he was "always happy to listen to proposals about how to improve on that".
"But we have got to control our disability budget and make sure help goes to the people who need it most."

In his letter, Mr Duncan Smith told MPs: "Last week, we published our response setting out our thoughts on how we should continue to take into account the use of aids and appliances.
"As the Chancellor said this morning, we will now take this response forward, continuing our discussions with disability groups and colleagues."

Justin Tomlinson, minister for disabled people, has been speaking to Tory colleagues to reassure them about the planned changes.

He told the BBC that although hundreds of thousands of people would be hit by the cut in 2020-21, many would not lose out completely: "A significant chunk of that 640,000 will continue to receive the benefit."