More dishonesty and damned deceit from Mister Ed

Ed Miliband obviously didn’t pick up a copy of Mind’s Daily Stigma as if he had he would have been aware of the self-perpetuating lies he was spouting at the Q and A session yesterday again about that man he met on benefits:

“He was somebody who had lost his job 10 years ago. I’m not questioning the fact that he genuinely had an ailment … but I just say to you, the system didn’t demand that he go back to work, the system wrote him off.

“The system said he had incapacity, he couldn’t work for a bit and that’s it.

“The problem is I met his next-door neighbours … and they didn’t actually refer to him, but they said: ‘Our problem is we are working incredibly hard and we are worried we are paying for people who can’t work. “

Now this poor ‘man in the constituency’ is being quoted again. I do wonder if he actually exists or indeed whether Ed has just spoken to one constituency member?

Mister Ed just lazily and offensively reiterates lies along with a good measure of presumptions neither based on the actual facts possibly just on a quick conversation. And Mister Ed shows he isn’t interested in finding out the facts rather judgmental comments are the fashion. Questions I would put to Ed on this subject?

1. Does Ed M. know what happened in the doctor’s surgery?
2. Discussions with the man’s doctor along with diagnosis, treatment and what a fully qualified clinician with all the facts would decide based on a medical judgement?
3. How does he know the neighbours were talking about this man as they didn’t actually refer to him?
4. Has Ed M. actually spoken to benefit claimants and doctors?
5. Or… is making wild assumptions based on right-wing populism that create more stigma and misery much more fun?
6. Does Ed M. like kicking the poor?
7. Does Ed M. actually look at statistics about benefits such as underpayments and benefits not claimed?
8. Does he know or even care that 0.5% of money is lost to false claims?
9. And that more is lost to tax evasion and avoidance i.e. rich people fiddling their taxes?
10. The very capitalists and business people Mister Ed is cool with…..?

Ed M even had the cheek to say, that he should have said in his keynote speech “you’ve got to defend people who are with disability, ill-health and say that they shouldn’t be under attack”. But chose not to, obviously.

What Ed M. did yesterday was to continually to vilify and stigmatise a group of already punished and kicked to the ground people. Benefits are an arduous task to apply for riddled with bureaucracy, and red tape. The system isn’t geared towards engendering a feeling of support and help instead obstacles are put in your way with the hope, no doubt, that it will put you off. And when you do dodge the obstacles, confront the hurdles and symbolically leap through the hoops you end up with a meagre sum that is barely enough to exist on yet the right-wing do like to lie about claimants living it up…

And lies stick….along with a leader of the opposition spreading more lies, deceit and hatred. But the likes of Ed M. won’t be ashamed of what he’s peddling as it’s classic divide and rule. Kicking the poor has always been a favourite sport of New Labour.

Awful proposals from “an influential adviser to Ed Miliband”… Maurice Glasman on benefits.