Dr Steven Bick said experts testing Incapacity Benefit claimants were told they should rate only about one in eight as so disabled they will never work
Medics are being given Government targets to boot the sick and disabled off benefits, a GP claims.
The tactic is part of a ConDem drive to force the vulnerable into jobs, he found in a probe.
He said experts testing Incapacity Benefit claimants were told they should rate only about one in eight as so disabled they will never work.
The “quota” is allegedly enforced by French firm Atos, paid £100million a year for the testing, and is revealed by undercover doctor Steven Bick on Channel 4’s Dispatches on Monday.
Dr. Steven Bick
Dr Bick said he was told it was set by the Department for Work and Pensions. Yesterday both the DWP and Atos denied setting targets.
Work minister Chris Grayling told MPs last year: “There is no target for decision makers.”
But Labour MP Tom Greatrex said yesterday: “The Government has been caught red-handed.”
He called for a National Audit Office investigation.
9 Responses
rogrJuly 27, 2012 at 4:21 am
If, say, an insurance policy was to be sold to people with those receiving the premiums having decided that regardless of merit only a small fixed percentage would actually get the benefits that their premiums had paid for then quite rightly this would be regarded as mis-selling just as it was with PPI and other schemes. The question is, in this case, whether the so called “arms length” operation of assessors working independently of those who have taken the premium (National “Insurance”) actually amounts to a criminal conspiracy to defraud the people who have made the payments when the time comes to make a claim. If it can be classified as such then those responsible will not be able to use the usual weasel words of “lessons to be learned” etc but will be facing a real chance of prosecution in the courts and it will soon come out who has been driving things.
Still, for all that the money taken from us is called “National Insurance” I have never seen a copy of the terms and conditions which say what is being insured or the terms under which payment has been taken. If anyone has it will be interesting to see whether they are being breached by this sort of alteration if not then surely, as with PPI, the guide ought to be that of what everyone thought they were paying for. This cannot possibly be like travel insurance where the last line of most small print carries the sort of warning that payouts are purely at the discretion of the company regardless of the merits of any claim, can it?
Mind you, if the authority for the quota came from the top of the DWP it would explain why a company has its employees sign the Official Secrets Act!
This needs to read together with this http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/335078
One explains the other.
Yes a national audit office investigation is essential as if this is the case it is nothing short of criminal.
This is shocking! The government said there were no targets!!! This needs to be investigated.
This is why ATOS don’t want recorded assessments, they cannot keep on target! Could the high turnover of HCP’s be that they are refusing to keep to the targets, basically ATOS forcing out HCP’s because they will not lie. There seem to be a smell of Eau de Rat with regards the assessments. The numbers for each group seemed to have remained constant, this only suggests that the assessments are manipulated as well as tribunals, neither know the severity of a case coming before them but both manage to keep to a constant rate of successful awards.
See for all of the benefit haters out there who assume that they will be looked after because they paid there NI contributions its all crap this government DOES NOT carry out its MORAL RESPONSIBILITIES!
ANYONE WANTING TO SCAM IT WILL STILL DO SO THE ONLY WAY YOU WILL CATCH THEM IS BY FOLLOWING THEM AND FILMING THEM!
So the 100 million the gov is paying to atos is all wasted because our consultants and gps were already doing it!
you right there termi atos doesnt want recorded it shows up whot lies they tell and would help those who go against them in tribunels and this is why they lose because of the lies ,and not extra evidence as dwp atos tell us its just their lies that hang them .ah some ones openned a door a crack so some more more truth is coming out and its whot we have been saying all long that you needed the willie wonker gold card to pass the atos exsperement ,so its 1 in 8 how nieve of us to think the torys lbdem whould play fair and have lied also in this it is unbelevible that goverment ministers lie its getting out of control when they cant speak the truth and should all resign for it jeff3
Does the fact that MP Tom Greatrex has called for a National Audit Office investigation mean that an investigation will definately happen? I’m not aware of the procedure here, can anyone enlighten me?
I really hope there is a National Audit Office Investigation – it is well past high time that ATOS and DWP were investigated for their fraudulent cruel work. Additionally, removing contibution-based ESA payments after one year is tantamount to breach of contract by the Gov. I’ve been hit by this- payed in NI all my working life. Will contact Freedom of Information to see if I can get information regarding the contract between the Government and citizens regarding NI contribs.
The weight of evidence regarding the scandalous operation that is ATOS is increasing.
It’s time for the Gov – the gold-plated tax-avoiding scroungers, to RESIGN.
This is Morally Un Acceptable and a Breach of Human Rights
Scrap the Work Capability Assessment Now
Enough of Victimisation of the Poor and Disabled