Fears over benefits for East Lancashire carers (From Lancashire Telegraph)
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Fears over benefits for East Lancashire carers
6:00pm Friday 15th February 2013 in News
HUNDREDS of carers in East Lancashire could see their benefits scrapped when new disability-claim rules start, it has been revealed.
Benefit eligibility of around 76,000 disabled people with unpaid carers will be assessed in April, when personal independence payments (PIP) oust disability living allow-ance (DLA).
And, with an estimated 25,000 losing eligibility and only 20,000 cared-for disabled people gaining entitlement under new rules, approx-imately 5,000 less carers nationwide will receive their weekly £58.45. John Rattigan, business manager at Crossroads Care East Lancashire, which offers carer support to hundreds across the region, said he was angered by the forecast.
“From our point of view it is shocking,” he said.
“It is so sad that carers who receive such a small income for what they do could have it taken from them.
“Even if it were to affect just 100 carers it would be 100 carers too many.”
The changes, described as ‘necessary’ by the Depart-ment for Work and Pensions, will save the government around £2billion.
However, Mr Rattigan said if carers ceased to exist, the taxpayer’s bill could increase tenfold.
“Some carers may now have to look for other work to make a living,” he said.
“If so, any people being cared for will have to go into hospitals or residential homes – facilities funded by the taxpayer. The best solution for us all is that the carer looks after them.”
More than a million people receive carer’s allowance nationwide, with around a quarter of claimants’ entitlement dependent on the person cared for being eligible for DLA.
Comments(4)
Excluded again
says...
9:44pm Fri 15 Feb 13
The government's priority is to protect the rich and carers are not rich. So they have to pay.
lmhjones
says...
11:22pm Fri 15 Feb 13
A Darener
says...
12:23pm Sat 16 Feb 13
lmhjones wrote:The country would come to a grinding halt! All the disabled who are cared for would have to be looked after by the state. This would mean all hospitals, care homes, social services facilities would be tied up trying to looking after them all.
before the last election david cameron said that he would put the needs of carers at the heart of every decision as the carers of the uk saved the uk economy at least 5 billion pounds annually. nick clegg on the same pre- election program called us the unsung heroes and heroines of the country and he wanted to see us get annual leave. thanks guys, guess it would be futile to point out that many of us gave us salaried work to care for our loved ones and are now going to be hit by a bedroom tax too. cant think of any other job in the country where the pay is £58 and you have to prove that you work at least 35 hours. 6 million of us care in the uk what would happen if we all had a general strike?
mavrick says...
9:32pm Fri 15 Feb 13