Letter 53: You don't have to be in Opposition to oppose the NHS Reform Bill

Shhh... you can even be a Tory :

Letter 52: Warning signs

It's my belief that a picture paints a thousand words....

Check out the article in the mentioned in the letter. As a measure of state of our society it's disgraceful to see how people living with disability are being treated in the UK right now.

(Many thanks to Duncan Hothersall  - though not his image, he was able to tell me that permission was granted to use the logo.)

Letter 51: The scapegoating of Fred Goodwin and compassionate conservatism.

The Tories really earned their "Nasty Party" nickname this week. Firstly it would seem they're neither loyal nor fair when the chips are down. I expect Stephen Hester and Fred Goodwin will have been swapping notes over the last few days. It must be galling for Dave that Ed Milliband keeps banging on about a scalp and a bonus not being enough to make public anger subside.

  The true face of compassionate conservatism was seen on Wednesday evening with the government's use of rare parliamentary procedure allowing them not only to overturn the Lords amendments to the Welfare reform Bill, but also preventing further challenges from Peers. It must be sickening for the Liberal Democrat party members that Tories were supported by their own MPs in the picking on the sick, poor and vulnerable. Hope Nick knows what he's doing...

"Dear Dave,

PMQs was interesting today but spoiled once more by the Punch and Judy show. it was great to see the Speaker so vocal. It's reassuring that under the circumstances he understands insult and arrogance do not sit well with the public,even if  it pleases the backbenchers. If only he were abele to do something about the hectoring and get opposition questions answered directly too...

But I digress...

I wasn't involved in the decisions of the last government. I didn't even vote for them, but Ed Milliband has been asking some really important questions of late and many of us would really like to hear proper answers to the following:

Why not implement the Walker Report so that all bankers salaries over £1 million  are published?

Why not put an ordinary employee on the re-numeration committees? Reasonable enough.

Without Ed Milliband, Hester would not have passed on this year's bonus. And let's face it, scapegoating Fred Goodwin by removing the knighthood doesn't go nearly far enough. It won't make banks safer, get them lending to SMEs, or make people less angry about the bonus culture. REGULATION will.

Welfare reform is also in the news and many poor and disabled people are extremely worried. How interesting it is, that your party feels, to incentivise the rich, you throw money at them; yet to incentivise the poor, you take it away. Care to explain the double standard?

Yours,etc"

Letter 50: Show your support for #spartacusreport

Today the Spartacus Report was launched, detailing just how many people are opposed to the Coalition's disability benefit reforms and why. Discussion of the Welfare Reform Bill is due to resume at its report stage on 11 January in the House of Lords. None of us plans to get ill, become disabled or wish to become so. If those of us not yet disabled were to support those that are, imagine what we could achieve.

(You might also like to sign Pat Onion's e-petition to support disabled people and their carers. )

Letter 49: Look sweetheart, tax is for poor people

This week, a letter about the stink surrounding some big business tax affairs, allegations of the deals done with HMRC and cuts to some of most vulnerable children in society. Hats off to UK Uncut and Private Eye, who doggedly pursued the HMRC to produce the truth. I shall be nominating them for a Big Society Award, but more of that another time...  

" Dear Dave,

Christmas or not, the pressure just doesn't stop does it? You must have seen the news on Tuesday? Full of the Public Accounts Committee report and suggestions of sweetheart deals between HMRC and big businesses. I was shocked to read that HMRC is currently seeking to resolve more than 2,700 issues with the biggest companies. And could you explain to me in these times of austerity (when we are all in this together) that Goldman Sachs should be let off £20 million in tax? I already knew about Vodafone settling their tax bill dispute by paying £1.25 billion when they allegedly should have paid £6 billion(!).

Actually I took part in protests, but I am genuinely surprised at how much money seems to have gone uncollected. Thank goodness for whistleblowers, UK Uncut, Private Eye and transparency, eh? It will be interesting to see what happens following UK Uncut issuing legal proceedings against HMRC today,

requesting disclosure of all internal documents relating to the Goldman Sachs deal. Now for that, I'd personally nominate UK Uncut for one of your Big Society Awards!

Do you agree that if ordinary people have to pay tax, so should big corporations and their owners? I know that your official spokesman has reported you are confident that all taxpayers are treated evenhandedly, but not everyone agrees especially when sweetheart deals with big businesses are denied to hardworking families, shopkeepers and small families. It's starting to look like the poor are being bullied into work (Workfare), while the rich are let off tax and bribed into staying in the UK through lowering Corporation Tax. Am I the only one thinking about what a difference uncollected taxes could make to austerity cuts and reforms you say are unavoidable? Take Universal Credit - once introduced, about 100,000 disabled children will be roughly £1,400 a year (£20,000 in a childhood) through 'reforms' to their allowances. Quite callous, that all but the most profoundly disabled children will get 1/2 the support they do now. IF only there was some money that could be found...

                                                     Yours, etc"

Many thanks to Rich at http://www.creativepopupcards.com/ for the heart template.

PMQs... what does it make you think of?

As I listened to PMQs I doodled and let Dave be my muse....

           

Letter 48: Rioters and Lobbyists: where does Dave's moral compass point?

There is no need to say anything today other than watch last night's Newsnight and read The Independent : 

"Dear Dave,

There has been such a lot to think about since watching Newsnight yesterday. Did you see it? The Guardian and LSE made a film, having researched the riots that took hold this summer. A really excellent piece of work, but very troubling. I do hope you have a copy - it would be so useful to inform so many of your policies.

It made me think about money and power. As did the article in The Independent, titled:

"Caught on camera: top lobbyists boasting how they influence the PM."

Did you see it? That had a short film too, equally interesting. Gosh, it looked quite bad, Dave. And it made me think of that funny little phrase: "MONEY TALKS".

Both stories are about money and power, but from different ends of the social and political spectrum, or the "haves" and "have nots" as some call them.

And it made me wonder... Are you not concerned that your own moral compass runs the risk of appearing compromised by allowing lobbyists (and those that fund them) unregulated access to you, thereby undermining our democratic process?

                                   Yours, etc"