Information Commissioner to decide about DWP deaths

My brother, Mike, once again refutes the specious arguments the DWP uses to try to avoid actually revealing the true figures of the people who’ve died due to being thrown off their benefits by Atos. He also attacks Keir Starmer’s intention to punish benefit fraud with up to ten years in prison. As with so much of the Condem’s thinking, this doesn’t make sense economically, and the punishment would far more expensive than the crime. But what’s the use of humanity and common sense when you’ve got such a great chance of kicking the poor when they’re really down.

Mike Sivier's blog

This will be no surprise to anyone:

The Department for Work and Pensions has stuck to its boneheaded reason for refusing to say how many people have died because of its policies.

Readers may remember (it is now a long time ago!) that Vox Political submitted a Freedom of Information request to the Department, back in June, asking for details of the number of Incapacity Benefit and Employment and Support Allowance claimants who have died in 2012 – including deaths of those who had been thrown off-benefit altogether, if such information was held.

This request was refused on the specious grounds that it was “vexatious”. The DWP officer making the refusal cited as his reason, not any part of the request itself, but the last line of the blog entry about it, stating “I strongly urge you to do the same. There is strength in numbers”.

The DWP decision-maker used…

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